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California Towhee

Pipilo crissalisOrder: PASSERIFORMESFamily: Sparrows (Emberizidae)

California Towhee Portrait
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General

California Towhee: Large sparrow with uniform brown-gray body, faintly streaked underparts, and buff throat bordered with dark streaks. Tail is long with cinnamon-brown undertail coverts. Sexes are similar. Juvenile has more diffusely streaked underparts.

Range and Habitat

California Towhee: Resident in coastal and foothill chaparral from Oregon to southern Baja California. Preferred habitats include shady underbrush, open woods, pinyon-juniper woodlands, and suburban gardens.

Listen to Call

Voice Text

"chink", "tseeee"

Interesting Facts

  • California Towhees are highly territorial and will often battle their own reflections in windows or other reflective surfaces.
  • First named as a separate species in 1839, they were combined with Canyon Towhee in 1886. Studies of their mitochondrial DNA has recently resulted in them being considered a full species once again.
  • They forage on the ground, scuffing the dirt with both feet at once in a fast, hopping motion.
  • A group of towhees are collectively known as a "tangle" and a "teapot" of towhees.


Author

Gary Owen Dick

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Range Map for California Towhee
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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.
Family
Species Pipilo crissalis
Length9 Inches
Wingspan12 Inches

California Towhee

California Towhee: Large sparrow, uniform brown-gray body, faintly streaked underparts, buff throat bordered with dark streaks. Tail is long with cinnamon-brown undertail coverts. Pink-brown legs and feet. Short flights with rapid beating wing strokes alternating with wings pulled briefly to sides.

● Song: "chink", "tseeee"

● Foraging & Feeding: California Towhee: Diet consists of seeds, grain, and insects. Forages in open, but usually prefers cover, quietly double-scratching on the ground under foliage, outdoor buildings, and fences.

● Breeding & nesting: California Towhee: Two to six light blue or green eggs, with brown and black markings, are laid in a cup nest built low in a bush or young tree. Eggs are incubated for approximately 11 days by the female.

● Similar species: California Towhee: Canyon Towhee has a rust-brown crown and grayer upperparts. Abert's Towhee is buff and has a black area around bill.

Flight Pattern

Short flights wih rapid wing beats.
California Towhee Body Illustration
● Range & Habitat: California Towhee: Resident in coastal and foothill chaparral from Oregon to southern Baja California. Preferred habitats include shady underbrush, open woods, pinyon-juniper woodlands, and suburban gardens.
BreedingMonogamous, Solitary nester
PopulationCommon in range
MigrationNonmigratory
Weight1.9 Ounces