The Song Thrush (Turdus philomelos) is one of the most common birds in Aotearoa New Zealand, having been introduced by European settlers in the late 19th century.

In my experience, they are not very smart birds. They will not take flight in the presence of humans or cats until they are very close. In the years I owned cats, Blackbirds were the most common catch, followed by Song Thrushes (not natives, as some in the anti-cat space want us to believe).

This one was happy for me to crouch down and wait for it to approach, not far from my parked car at Motukaraka Point in Pāuatahanui.