Spotted Towhee
Pipilo maculatus
Summary 4
The Spotted Towhee (Pipilo maculatus) is a large sparrow with a black head, chest and back with white spots on the wings and back, rust colored flanks and a white belly. Females are similar except that they are brown instead of black.
To hear an example of Spotted Towhee sounds: http://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Spotted_Towhee/sounds
Where on campus? 5
Spotted Towhees are commonly seen in the California Native Plant Garden, and on the ground in the Eucalyptus grove between parking lots 5 and 6. They can also be seen in the edge habitats around the creeks that border the campus.
Habitat? 5
Spotted Towhees can be found in shrubby habitats as well as fields, forest edges and backyards.
Life History 5
Nesting Spotted Towhees nest on the ground and the female beuilds a nest out of bark, leaves and other dried plant material in a depression.
Feeding Spotted Towhees spend a lot of time foraging in leaf litter and eat a large variety of invertebrates. They also eat a wide variety of plant seeds and berries including blackberry, poison oak and acorns.
Distribution 5
Spotted Towhees are primarily found in Western North America.
Migration 5
Spotted Towhees are residents in our area.
Sources and Credits
- (c) sarbhloh, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-ND), http://www.flickr.com/photos/29452402@N07/2939912802
- (c) 2012 Robert Sivinski, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), http://calphotos.berkeley.edu/cgi/img_query?seq_num=416397&one=T
- (c) Walter Siegmund, some rights reserved (CC BY), https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/47/Pipilo_maculatus_31033.JPG/460px-Pipilo_maculatus_31033.JPG
- Adapted by gillian360 from a work by (c) Wikipedia, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA), http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pipilo_maculatus
- (c) gillian360, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA)
