Bird name:

Eastern Towhee

Pipilo erythrophthalmus

Order

PASSERIFORMES

Family

Sparrows (Emberizidae)

Code 4

EATO

Code 6

PIPERP

ITIS

179276

Breeding Location:

Forest edge

Breeding Type:

Monogamous, Solitary nester

Breeding Population:

Common to fairly common

Egg Color:

Creamy white or gray

Number of Eggs:

2 - 6

Incubation Days:

12 - 13

Egg Incubator:

Female

Nest Material:

Sticks, rootlets, grass, bark, and leaves., Lined with soft grasses and animal hair.

Migration:

Northern birds migrate

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General

Eastern Towhee: Large sparrow with black upperparts, hood and upper breast, rufous flanks, and white underparts. Wings are black with white markings. Tail is long and black with white corners. Female is similar but is brown instead of black. Juvenile is dark-streaked brown overall with pale chin.

Range and Habitat

Eastern Towhee: Breeds from southern Saskatchewan east to Maine and south to California and Florida. Spends winters across much of eastern U.S. north to Nebraska and southern New England. Preferred habitats include undergrowth and brushy edges of open woods. Northeastern birds favor young jack pines or second-growth oak forests; southern birds seek scrub oak or palmetto.

Breeding and Nesting

Eastern Towhee: Two to six creamy white or gray eggs are laid in a cup nest made of sticks, rootlets, grass, bark, and leaves, and lined with soft grass and animal hair. Nest is built on the ground under a bush or brush pile. Incubation ranges from 12 to 13 days and is carried out by the female.

Foraging and Feeding

Eastern Towhee: Eats insects, acorns, seeds, and berries; forages on the ground or in low vegetation.

Readily Eats

Cracked Corn, Peanuts, Nut Meats

Vocalization

Eastern Towhee: Song is a clear, whistled "drink your teeee" with the "teee" trilled. Call is "chewink."

Similar Species

Eastern Towhee: Spotted Towhee has wing-bars and white spots on back.

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Bird Call Credits: The Macaulay Library of Natural Sounds at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. Martyn Stewart, http://www.naturesound.org, Redmond, Washington USA. The reuse or copying of bird calls in this database is strictly forbidden.

Underparts

Belly, undertail coverts, chest, flanks, and foreneck.

Upperparts

Back, rump, hindneck, wings, and crown.

Breast

The upper front part of a bird.

Chin

The area of the face just below the bill.

4 and 6 letter alpha codes

The four letter common name alpha code is is derived from the first two letters of the common first name and the first two letters of common last name. The six letter species name alpha code is derived from the first three letters of the scientific name (genus) and the first three letters of the scientific name (species). See (1) below for the rules used to create the codes..

Four-letter (for English common names) and six-letter (for scientific names) species alpha codes were developed by Pyle and DeSante (2003, North American Bird-Bander 28:64-79) to reflect A.O.U. taxonomy and nomenclature (A.O.U. 1998) as modified by Supplements 42 (Auk 117:847-858, 2000) and 43 (Auk 119:897-906, 2002). The list has been updated by Pyle and DeSante to reflect changes reported by the A.O.U from 2003 through 2006.

Field Guide to Birds of North America