Female Eastern Towhee
by Elizabeth Winter
Title
Female Eastern Towhee
Artist
Elizabeth Winter
Medium
Photograph - Photography
Description
Eastern towhees are ground sparrows. They spend most of their time foraging for seeds, insects and fruit on the ground or on low shrubs. Eastern towhees scratch the ground with their feet to uncover food buried under leaves or dirt. They have a thick beak that helps them break open seeds.
Eastern Towhees are common victims of the Brown-headed Cowbird and are often unable to tell the difference between their own eggs and the intruders.
Once considered one species with Spotted Towhee: Rufous-sided Towhee. Will hybridize with Spotted Towhee where ranges overlap.
The classic Eastern Towhee song, given by males, is a loud drink-your-tea! lasting about 1 second. The first note (drink) is sharp and metallic, and the final note (tea) is a musical trill. Sometimes the song will start with more than one drink.
Uploaded
August 5th, 2017
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