A Collection of Wanderings

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WHAT TO NOTICE

Start with those eyes. A male Spotted Towhee has a striking black head with red eyes, and an upper body interrupted by bright white spots, rust colored sides, and a white belly.

Females show the same pattern, but their dark areas are generally softer brown and gray.

It spends most of its time on the ground scratching through leaf litter with enthusiasm.

HOW IT LIVES:

Towhees like cover.

Dense shrubbery provides places to hide, nest and forage while the open ground beneath feeders gives access to seeds, insects and small prey.

During breeding season, insects become an especially important part of the diet, including beetles, grasshoppers, caterpillars and other invertebrates.

THE INTERESTING PART

The spotted towhee is a professional leaf flipper.

Its signature move is called double-scratching. The bird jumps forward and then rapidly kicks both feet back sending leaves flying backward and exposing whatever is hiding underneath.

WHERE I FOUND IT:

March 9, 2026 – Scottsdale, Arizona

This colorful character showed up in my East Aviary in Scottsdale while I was photographing finches sporting orange wings and red legs. He usually sneaks in from beneath the brush and searches the ground when the bird feeder gets active, so I was surprised when he unexpectedly landed in the mesquite tree. He came to speak out against a female cardinal who had positioned herself among the branches.

She was eyeballing the feeder for direct access. He complained loudly that she was in his territory. Yet she was there first. Pffft. She lifted and lowered her crest at him in protest, bounced around on the limb, and finally flew to a higher branch. Satisfied, he returned to his usual ground explorations. How rude! He didn’t even want to be in the branches. Maybe he was afraid she would poop on him. Odd. I always thought that was lucky.

WORDS TO KNOW:

Towhee – A group of large New World sparrows known for spending considerable time scratching on the ground.

Rufous Flanks – The warm reddish-brown feathers along the sides of the body between the wings and belly.

Rectrices – The stiff tail feathers used for steering and braking and balance during flight.