Is the gray catbird an oxymoron?

Gray catbird at Munroe Park in Kelowna

The term is almost an oxymoron.  Does the word catbird fall into the same category as single-word oxymorons such as bittersweet and spendthrift?  Perhaps not, as an oxymoron is generally described as two words are used together that have opposite meanings to each other.  Classis examples are jumbo shrimp, civil war, and love-hate.  I suppose you would have to say that catbird is not an oxymoron, but it is kind of funny to think of it that way.

This is only the second catbird I have ever seen and photographed.  Yet they can be found throughout most of southern Canada and about two-thirds of the continental US (see map here).  The bird looks somewhat plain at an initial glance as most of it is in fact a dull gray colour.  The exceptions though are the conspicuous black cap and the cinnamon feathers under the base of the tail.  These are somewhat hard to see, but you can just make them out in the above image.

Catbirds are related to mockingbirds and, as such, have also inherited their ability to copy bird calls.  Often their songs are just a somewhat random series of warblings, but they can mimic other birds with impressive accuracy.  Have a look at this link to hear an example of this.  The name catbird was derived from the bird's native vocalizations that sound somewhat like a cat's mewing.  

Thanks for reading.

Eric Svendsen     www.ericspix.com