Found in mature deciduous or mixed forests (Dunn and Garrett 1997) with a closed canopy, large trees, little ground cover, and few shrubs (Smith and Shugart 1987). Prefers dry woodlands in the western part of the state, (Potter et al. 1980, Simpson et al. 1992), damp woods near the coast (Fussell 1994).

Builds dome-shaped nest out in the open on the leaf-covered forest floor, or in a clump of fern, grasses, or other low plants, or at the base of a shrub, sapling, or stump (Dunn and Garrett 1997). It may also be built into a slight depression (Griscom and Sprunt 1957). The nest is often placed near a forest opening such as a trail or road. Nest is constructed mostly from dead leaves; grasses, pine needles, hair, and fibers are also used (Dunn and Garrett 1997). It is always topped with leaves and branches and has a small entrance in the side (Ehrlich et al. 1988) which usually faces downhill (Nicholson 1997). Sings from low branches (Alsop 1991). Almost always forages on the ground (Ehrlich et al. 1988), in the leaf litter and in fallen logs, but will occasionally forage in a tree (Dunn and Garrett 1997).

NATURE SERVE GLOBAL HABITAT COMMENTS:

Deciduous forest, rarely humid mixed woodland; medium-aged and mature forests; requires a relatively closed canopy, prefers woods with a high basal area of medium-sized trees, an open understory, and intermediate shrub density; most abundant in mature undisturbed woods with thick layer of leaf litter (see Bushman and Therres 1988). Prefers a hilly terrain, and occurs at elevations up to 1500m in the Southern Appalachians (Hamel 1992). Generally associated within large tracts of forest or forest patches that are close to large forested areas, though may breed in patches as small as 4 ha (see Bushman and Therres 1988). In Ontario, Canada, extirpations and recolonizations occurred most often in relatively small patches of forest (Hagan and Johnston 1992). In Pennsylvania, reproductive success was much higher in large forest tracts than in forest fragments (Porneluzi et al. 1993); more sensitive than other area-dependent birds to increased fragmentation via forest clear-cutting (Yahner 1993). In Missouri, percentage of males that were paired increased with forest tract size (0% paired in tracts of 350 ha, 65% on larger trracts of 900 ha); also, pairing success was significantly higher in territories that were more than 300 m from the forest edge (Van Horn et al. 1995). See Gibbs and Faaborg (1990) for estimates of the viability of populations in forest fragments in Missouri. See Wenny et al. (1993) for information on habitat selection in Missouri. Nests are built in slight depressions on the forest floor.