All birds New World Sparrows
Spotted Towhee
Pipilo maculatus
Here October to April.
Recorded by Alex Lin-Moore. CC BY-NC-SA 4.0, via xeno-canto, trimmed and volume evened out.
Look for
- A dark hood over the head and neck, and red eyes. Males have a black hood.
- Rusty orange sides and a white belly.
- Lots of white spots on the wings and back. That's how it got its name.
A little about it
Spotted Towhees spend the winter here. They come in October and stay until April, and February has the most. Many nest farther north and west, then spread east onto the Great Plains for the winter.
Towhees are usually alone or in small groups of fewer than 8. They feed on the ground under trees and bushes. They kick and scratch through dead leaves to find bugs and seeds.
In summer they eat lots of bugs, like beetles and caterpillars. They also eat spiders, snails, seeds, acorns, and berries. At feeders, they like seed scattered on the ground or on a low tray near thick bushes.
The nest is on the ground under a bush, or low in a bush. It's usually less than 5 feet up. The female lays 3 to 5 eggs, and the young leave the nest 9 to 11 days after they hatch.
Fun fact
You may hear a towhee before you see it. Listen for busy scratching in the dead leaves under thick bushes.
When it's here
- January: here
- February: here
- March: here
- April: here
- May: a few
- June: not here
- July: not here
- August: not here
- September: not here
- October: here
- November: here
- December: here
Taller bars mean more sightings. Most often seen in February.
How big
7 to 8 inches. Bigger than a sparrow, and a little smaller than a robin.
Where to look
Thick brush and the bushy edges of woods, on the ground under the bushes. It may visit yards that have lots of thick bushes.
People have spotted it at Mitch Park, Arcadia Lake, Myriad Botanical Gardens.
Could it be something else?
Eastern Towhee
It looks a lot like a Spotted Towhee, with the same kind of hood and rusty sides. Its back and wings don't have the white spots. Until not long ago, scientists counted the 2 as 1 kind of bird, called the Rufous-sided Towhee.
Dark-eyed Junco
Some juncos have a dark hood and rusty sides too, and they flash white on the tail. A towhee is bigger, with red eyes and white spots on its wings.
Where these facts come from
- Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation field guide
- Audubon Guide to North American Birds
- When it's here: Sightings shared on iNaturalist in the 8 counties, all years.