Catharus

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Catharus is a genus of birds in the thrush family Turdidae. It contains the small, mostly insectivorous or omnivorous migrant thrushes of North America and the nightingale-thrushes of Central and South America. Its closest relative is the wood thrush of the monotypic genus Hylocichla, which is sometimes merged into Catharus.

These are mainly forest birds with large eyes, straight slim bills and fluty voices.

This is a typical New World thrush genus, although representatives of other genera, such as the true thrushes (Turdus) also occur in the region, especially in Central and South America. The breeding range of one species, grey-cheeked thrush, extends into Siberia. The four North American species have all been recorded as vagrants in Europe on multiple occasions, and Swainson's and hermit thrushes have occurred as vagrants in northeast Asia.

The genus name Catharus comes from the Ancient Greek (katharós) "pure" or "clean", and refers to the plumage of the orange-billed nightingale-thrush C. aurantiirostris.