Category Archives: Towhees

Sounds of spring grow more varied as season advances

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Photo by Bryan Stevens • Former common name rufous-sided towhee became Eastern towhee, which is far less descriptive of the bird’s appearance. In spring, male towhees become persistent singers. Listen for their “drink-your-tea” song as the males perch on elevated branches and twigs.

The sounds of spring surround us from sunrise to sunset with much of this seasonal chorus being provided by our feathered friends, the birds. In these weird weeks in need of something distracting, I’ve been letting nature’s sounds, as well as sights, provide some measure of relief from stressful headlines and anxious thoughts.

The mornings around my home often begin with a loud, insistent “Peter! Peter! Peter!” uttered from the woods or even just outside my bedroom window. Male tufted titmice, little gray relatives of chickadees with a distinctive crest and large, dark eyes, sing their urgent “Peter! Peter! Peter!” as a constant refrain in their efforts to attract mates now that they feel spring in their blood.

A series of rat-a-tat-tats echoes from deeper in the woods as woodpeckers tap their sturdy bills against the trunks of trees. The three most common woodpeckers at my home are red-bellied, downy, and pileated, and they all have their own unique vocalizations, as well.

Photo by Bryan Stevens • Woodpeckers not only vocalize, they also add to the spring cacophony by drumming against the trunks of trees.

The pileated woodpecker produces clear, far-carrying resonant piping sounds that can last for a few seconds each blast. The much smaller downy woodpecker produces a whinny of high-pitched notes that descend in pitch toward their conclusion. The red-bellied call is probably the one that stands out the most. The call’s a harsh, rolling “Churr, churr, churr” given almost like an expression of exasperation as they circle tree trunks and explore branches.

Since their return earlier this month, the resident red-winged blackbirds are often some of the earliest singers these days. According to the website All About Birds, the male red-winged blackbird’s “conk-la-ree!” is a classic sound of wetlands across the continent of North America. According to the website, the one-second song starts with an abrupt note that transforms quickly into a musical trill.

Photo by Bryan Stevens • A male red-winged blackbird sings to attract mates and ward off rivals.

Some birds helpfully introduce themselves with a song that repeats their name. One such common bird is the Eastern phoebe. In recent weeks, a pair has been checking out the rafters of my garage for potential nest sites. The male spends much of the day producing his strident “fee-bee” call, which is a perfect phonetic rendition of the bird’s common name.

Photo by Bryan Stevens • The Eastern Phoebe’s song is a repetitive rendition of its own name — “fee-bee” — given over and over.

Then there’s one of my favorite songs of spring, which is produced by the Eastern towhee, which is also known by such common names as “ground robin” and “swamp robin.” These birds, which are actually a species of sparrow, also have some instantly recognizable vocalizations. With the arrival of spring, the males seek elevated perches for extensive singing bouts to attract mates and establish territories. Their song has been interpreted, quite accurately, as “drink your tea!” They also have some alarm notes, such as “€œChew-ink”€ and “€œToe-Hee,” of which the latter provides the basis for this bird’s common name.

Of course, other wildlife joins the chorus. I have so many spring peepers at the fish pond and in the wet fields around my house that the noise from these tiny amphibians can reach deafening levels. The chorus is bound to grow more diverse and louder as spring advances. Take some time to enjoy the sounds of nature at your own home.

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To share your own sighting, make a comment or ask a question, send email to ahoodedwarbler@aol.com. I’m also on Facebook.

Photo by Bryan Stevens • An alert Eastern towhee female forages on a lawn.

 

Skittish nature means getting to know towhees takes some effort

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Photo by Bryan Stevens • Former common name rufous-sided towhee became Eastern towhee, which is far less descriptive of the bird’s appearance.
Photo by Bryan Stevens • A male Eastern Towhee waits out a snowstorm.

Mary Beierle, who lives in Elizabethton, Tennessee, sent me an email to share information about recent nesting activity by a pair of Eastern towhees at her home in the Stoney Creek community.

“Just wanted to tell you that we have a nesting pair of Eastern towhees here in Stoney Creek,” Mary wrote in her email. “This is the first year they have stayed after a brief visit in early spring.”

While not as many people may be familiar with Eastern towhees as, say, northern cardinals or ruby-throated hummingbirds, those who have made an acquaintance with these unusual songbirds are, like Mary, captivated instantly.

“I am very fond of these birds,” she noted in her email. “The male is really beautiful and the female is also lovely, although not as colorful as the male.”9780307370020-us 2

Eastern towhees spend much of their time on the ground and hidden in thickets and hedges. As a result, other common names for this bird includes “ground robin” and “swamp robin,” which refer to some of this bird’s habitat preferences. They’re not thrushes, however, and are unrelated to thrush family members such as American robin, Eastern bluebird and wood thrush. Instead, towhees are one of the larger members of the sparrow family.

Mary noted some of this bird’s typical behavior from her observations. “I love the way they hop around,” she wrote. “They are very skittish, and I can’t get them to stand still for a photo.”

At my own home, I have a pair of Eastern towhees currently occupied with nesting. When I get too close, both parents claim an elevated perch and call in agitation as long as I am in the vicinity. The towhees are just one of many nesting birds so far this spring. Other nesting birds in my yard or the surrounding woodlands this spring have included tree swallow, Eastern bluebird, brown thrasher, song sparrow, American robin and Eastern phoebe.

The Eastern towhee represents a bit of a milestone in my personal birding history. I saw and identified my first Eastern towhee in early spring in 1993. At that time, I was struggling to identify some of the common visitors at my feeders. I was acquainted with white-breasted nuthatches, blue jays, downy woodpeckers, Carolina wrens, dark-eyed juncos and a handful of other birds. When I looked out a window and saw this bird feeding on the ground, the morning sun illuminating his dramatic plumage of black, white and rufous red, I was immediately aware this visitor represented something new and unexpected.

Consulting a field guide — I was using the Golden Nature Guide to the Most Familiar American Birds at the time — I soon found a painted illustration of a rufous-sided towhee that matched in every detail the bird I had just observed on the ground beneath a blue spruce in my yard.

Many of the older field guides still list the Eastern towhee as “rufous-sided towhee” which is actually more descriptive of the bird’s appearance than the word “eastern.” In 1995, ornithologists renamed the rufous-sided towhee to Eastern towhee and also separated the Eastern species from its western counterpart, the spotted towhee. Until that point, these two towhees had been considered different races of the same species. In 2003, I saw a spotted towhee during a visit to Salt Lake City, Utah. The bird looks almost identical to an Eastern towhee except for considerable white spotting — hence its common name — on the bird’s back.

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Male Eastern Towhee sings from a perch.

Male and female Eastern towhees each possess a stately if subtle beauty. Males have a black hood. The black coloration extends into the back and tail. The belly is white and the sides are flanked with a rusty-red color. In flight, their black tails are bordered with white feathers, which produces a dramatic flash of contrasting colors. The female Eastern towhee is an attractive bird in her own right. She shares the rufous sides and white coloration that are present in the male’s plumage. However, the male’s black feathers are replaced by a warm, chocolate brown plumage in the female. In addition, their bright red eyes help set these birds apart from other songbirds.

The Eastern towhee is one of my favorite yard birds, but not just because of its dramatic appearance. These birds also have some instantly recognizable vocalizations. With the arrival of spring, the males will seek elevated perches for extensive singing bouts to attract mates and establish territories. Their song has been interpreted, quite accurately, as an emphatically delivered “Drink your tea!” They also have some alarm notes, such as “Chew-ink” and “Toe-Hee,” which provides the basis for this bird’s common name.

Eastern_Towhee

Female Eastern Towhees are usually more retiring than males.

They are often found in the same sort of tangled habitat favored by Northern cardinals, gray catbirds and brown thrashers. To attract these birds, simply refrain from doing too much to alter your landscape. For instance, don’t manicure every square inch of your yard. Leave some wild corners that will run rampant and provide a luxurious tangle for birds that thrive under cover. In the southern United States, towhees prosper in scrub palmetto habitats. In our region, any hedge or bramble thicket will provide adequate cover to make these birds feel welcome.

While they may never completely lose their wariness, towhees will become gradually more accepting of sharing a yard with people. It helps that they will readily visit feeders for sunflower seeds. If you succeed in attracting a family of Eastern towhees to your yard and garden, I am confident you’ll not be disappointed.

Towhees greet spring’s arrival with enthusiasm

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Towhjee-Sings

Photo by Bryan Stevens                                                                         A male Eastern Towhee sings from an elevated perch.

The fact that April is already so far advanced has caught me somewhat by surprise, which is surprising since there are plenty of signs letting me know spring’€™s approaching. For instance, each morning when I leave for work I usually hear a cacophony of singing birds, including Eastern Bluebirds, Song Sparrows, Tufted Titmice and Carolina Chickadees.

The birds are stirring, and that always means the seasons are shifting. On bird that has been quite prominent in the yard for the past few weeks has been the Eastern Towhees. We had several individuals, both males and females, spend the winter near the feeders.

I saw and identified my first Eastern Towhee in early spring in 1993. At that time, I was struggling to identify some of the common visitors at my feeders. I was acquainted with White-breasted Nuthatches, Blue Jays, Downy Woodpeckers, Carolina Wrens, Dark-eyed Juncos and a handful of other birds. When I looked out a window and saw this bird feeding on the ground, the morning sun illuminating his dramatic plumage of black, white and rufous red, I was immediately aware this visitor represented something new and unexpected.

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This pocket-sized reference guide helped many beginning birders learn to identify common backyard birds.

Consulting a field guide —€” I was using the Golden Nature Guide to the Most Familiar American Birds — I soon found a painted illustration of a Rufous-sided Towhee that matched in every detail the bird I had just observed on the ground beneath a Blue Spruce in my yard.

Many of the older field guides still list the Eastern Towhee as “€œRufous-sided Towhee,”€ which is actually more descriptive of the bird’s appearance than the word “€œeastern.”

Photo by U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service A male Spotted Towhee shows extensive spotting on its back.

Photo by U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service
A male Spotted Towhee shows extensive spotting on its back.

In 1995, ornithologists renamed the Rufous-sided Towhee to Eastern Towhee and also separated the Eastern Towhee from its western counterpart, the Spotted Towhee. Until that point, these two towhees had been considered different races of the same species.

In 2003, I saw a Spotted Towhee during a visit to Salt Lake City, Utah. The bird looks almost identical to an Eastern Towhee except for considerable white spotting —€” hence its common name — on the bird’€™s back.

Eastern_Towhee

Photo by U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service           The female Eastern Towhee’s plumage is a rich, chocolate brown where the male’s feathers are black.

Eastern Towhees do spend a considerable amount of time on the ground and hidden in thickets and hedges. Other common names for this bird includes “Ground Robin” and “Swamp Robin.”€ They are one of the larger members of the sparrow family, however, and not related to the thrush family, which includes such birds as American Robin, Eastern Bluebird and Wood Thrush.

Towhee1

Photo by Bryan Stevens                            Towhees spend much of their time on the ground when searching for food.

Unlike the “€œbrown”€ members of the sparrow family, the Eastern Towhee is a brightly colored bird. Males have a black hood. The black coloration extends into the back and tail. The belly is white and the sides are flanked with a rusty-red color. In flight, their black tails are bordered with white feathers, which produces a dramatic flash of contrasting colors. The female Eastern Towhee is an attractive bird in her own right. She shares the rufous sides and white coloration that are present in the male’s plumage. However, the male’€™s black feathers are replaced by a warm, chocolate brown plumage in the female.

The Eastern Towhee is one of my favorite yard birds, but not just because of its dramatic appearance. These birds also have some instantly recognizable vocalizations. With the arrival of spring, the males will seek elevated perches for extensive singing bouts to attract mates and establish territories. Their song has been interpreted, quite accurately, as “Drink your tea!” They also have some alarm notes, such as “€œChew-ink”€ and “€œToe-Hee,” which is the basis for this bird’s common name.

Greentailed_towhee

Photo by U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service    Although the smallest member of the towhee family, the Green-tailed Towhee is still a larger bird than most members of the sparrow clan.

They are often found in the same sort of tangled habitat favored by Northern Cardinals and Brown Thrashers. To attract these birds, don’€™t manicure every inch of your yard. Leave some wild corners that will provide shelter for birds that thrive under cover. In the southern United States, these birds thrive in scrub palmetto habitats.

Other North American towhees include Green-tailed Towhee, Abert’s Towhee, California Towhee and Canyon Towhee.

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I want to close this week’s column by asking for help from readers. I love to document the yearly arrival of Ruby-throated Hummingbirds. I’d appreciate hearing from any readers who would like to share the information about their first hummingbird sighting of the season. Simply send me your name and location, as well as the date and time when your first hummingbird arrived. The best way to contact me is by my email at ahoodedwarbler@aol.com. Messages are also welcome through my Facebook account at http://www.facebook.com/ahoodedwarbler.

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Photo Courtesy of Jean Potter                                                                                                                The male Eastern Towhee sings persistently during the spring season.