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Project Noah Nature School
Pipilo erythrophthalmus
Ground feeding bird with a very erect head or tail feathers. I do not recognize this bird. It fed under one of the feeders with sunflower seeds for a few seconds and flew off. "Brown head, chest, back, wings and tail Rufous sides White belly and white spot in middle of wing When foraging on ground, tail often cocked upward" Cornell Lab Ornithology "Size & Shape Towhees are a kind of large sparrow. Look for their thick, triangular, seed-cracking bill as a tip-off they’re in the sparrow family. Also notice the chunky body and long, rounded tail. Color Pattern Males are striking: bold sooty black above and on the breast, with warm rufous sides and white on the belly. Females have the same pattern, but are rich brown where the males are black. Behavior Eastern Towhees spend most of their time on the ground, scratching at leaves using both feet at the same time, in a kind of backwards hop. They spend lots of time concealed beneath thick underbrush. You may see this bird more often when it climbs into shrubs and low trees to sing."-- Cornell Lab Ornithology
"Habitat. Look for Eastern Towhees in brush, tangles, thickets, and along forest edges where there’s plenty of leaf litter for the birds to forage in."-- Cornell Lab Ornithology
Thank you for the ID help.
Spotted on Jan 7, 2012
Submitted on Jan 17, 2012
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