NATURAL HISTORY · CATALOGUE RECORD
Karoo Thrush
Turdus smithi Bonaparte, 1850
Source-backed taxonomic record
Accepted species in Catalogue of Life’s 11 September 2026 base release. This preserves the source classification and available supporting data; it is not a completed species monograph.
Open encyclopedia reference
The Karoo thrush (Turdus smithi), also known as Smith's thrush, is a member of the thrush family in Africa. It has traditionally been considered a subspecies of the olive thrush (with which it is known to hybridize), but is increasingly treated as a separate species. The specific name honours the Scottish military surgeon and zoologist Sir Andrew Smith.
Wikipedia contributors, Karoo thrush; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T02:21:19.109010+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Turdus smithi Bonaparte, 1850
- Name authority
- Bonaparte, 1850
- Common name
- Karoo Thrush
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Aves
- Order
- Passeriformes
- Family
- Turdidae
- Genus
- Turdus
- Extinction status
- Recorded extant
Classification family tree
Nested taxonomic groups from the source. This is not a direct-ancestor chain, a dated evolutionary tree or a phylogenetic reconstruction.
- domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- subphylumVertebrata
- infraphylumGnathostomata
- parvphylumOsteichthyes
- megaclassTetrapoda
- classAves
- orderPasseriformes
- familyTurdidae Rafinesque, 1815
- genusTurdus Linnaeus, 1758
- speciesTurdus smithi Bonaparte, 1850
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Turdus. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| White-necked ThrushTurdus albicollis Vieillot, 1818 | TurdidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Creamy-bellied ThrushTurdus amaurochalinus Cabanis, 1851 | TurdidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| White-throated RobinTurdus assimilis Cabanis, 1851 | TurdidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Black-throated ThrushTurdus atrogularis Jarocki, 1819 | TurdidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Comoro ThrushTurdus bewsheri E. Newton, 1877 | TurdidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Dusky ThrushTurdus eunomus Temminck, 1831 | TurdidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Grey-sided ThrushTurdus feae (Salvadori, 1887) | TurdidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Yellow-legged ThrushTurdus flavipes Vieillot, 1818 | TurdidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Cocoa ThrushTurdus fumigatus M. H. C. Lichtenstein, 1823 | TurdidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Clay-colored RobinTurdus grayi Bonaparte, 1838 | TurdidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Grey-backed ThrushTurdus hortulorum P. L. Sclater, 1863 | TurdidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| White-eyed ThrushTurdus jamaicensis J. F. Gmelin, 1789 | TurdidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
Documented distribution
Source distribution statements, not a complete range map. A listed locality is not necessarily a place of origin.
Source literature & publication evidence
References attached to this source record, including nomenclatural citations where supplied. This is a selected bibliography; abbreviated citations remain in the source’s form.
- Bonaparte, & Carolo Luciano. (1850). Conspectus Generum Avium, Vol. 1. Source fields: Taxon.tsv dwc:namePublishedIn, Taxon.tsv dcterms:references
Origins, evidence & remaining research
Name authority and publication references document nomenclature where the source supplies it. They do not establish evolutionary origins or the earliest fossil occurrence.
Specimen-level evidence, morphology, ecological research, phylogenetic studies, a comprehensive bibliography and a located literary passage have not yet been compiled for this record. A suitable sourced image remains to be added.
Dataset citation & attribution
This exact taxon in ChecklistBank · Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11
Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11; dataset 316321; doi:10.48580/dgz5n. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ . Retrieved 5 October 2026.
Stable key: col:59PN9. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.