# Spotted Towhee

*Pipilo maculatus*

They perform a unique 'double-scratch' move, hopping backward and forward to kick away leaves and reveal hidden insects.

- **Taxonomy:** Animalia › Chordata › Aves › Passeriformes › Passerellidae › Pipilo
- **IUCN Red List status:** Least Concern
- **Population trend:** stable
- **Biome:** forest
- **Habitat:** Dense thickets, chaparral, forest edges, and shrubby suburban gardens.
- **Diet:** Omnivorous; primarily seeds and berries in winter, switching to beetles, caterpillars, and spiders in summer.
- **Range:** Western North America, Canada, United States, Mexico
- **Size:** 17-21 cm in length; wingspan of 23-30 cm.
- **Lifespan:** Up to 12 years in the wild.
- **Active:** diurnal
- **Threats:** Habitat fragmentation, predation by domestic cats, and collisions with glass windows.
- **Safe to approach?:** Harmless and shy. Observe from a distance as they forage in leaf litter. To prevent harm to these birds, keep domestic cats indoors and use bird-safe window decals to prevent collisions.

## About

The spotted towhee ( Pipilo maculatus ) is a large New World sparrow. The taxonomy of the towhees has been debated in recent decades, and until 1995 this bird and the eastern towhee were considered a single species, the Rufous-sided Towhee . An archaic name for the spotted towhee is the Oregon towhee ( Pipilo maculatus oregonus ).

## Sources

- Plate: https://gaia-dex.com/species/98263ca6-6923-4285-8c6c-0b2f723ab86c
- iNaturalist: https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/9420
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pipilo maculatus
- Conservation status: IUCN Red List category, as recorded by Gaia-Dex
- Photo: https://inaturalist-open-data.s3.amazonaws.com/photos/2373007/medium.jpg (Nigel Voaden, CC-BY, via iNaturalist)

Habitat, diet, size and similar notes are AI-written summaries; check them against the linked sources before relying on them.