The species is the most common Turdus thrush of disturbed habitats in western Amazonia and on the Guianan Shield, occurring in Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Venezuela, and Bolivia. It inhabits a variety of habitats including clearings, savannas with gallery woodland, cerrado, humid forest borders, coffee plantations, and various other habitats under anthropogenic influence.
The black-billed thrush feeds on terrestrial invertebrates (beetles and flies, worms, crickets and caterpillars) as well as berries and fruits. The bird inhabits the midstory of vegetation. It lays two eggs in a cup-shaped nest. Individuals are generally solitary.
