[Length 8.5 in. Wingspan 10.5 in.]

The Eastern Towhee (formerly known as the eastern race of the Rufous-sided Towhee) breeds throughout most of the eastern US and the far southeast of Canada. It withdraws from the northern portion of its range in winter. Although the black and rufous plumage of the male is quite distinctive, the bird is more often heard than seen, giving its "Drink your tea" song and "Chewink" call note from the cover of dense bushes, where it forages in the leaf litter. It is often heard as it rapidly hops backward, raking the leaves with its feet to expose insects and other invertebrates. Females have the same basic color pattern, except that the black is replaced by a rich chocolate brown. This male was photographed along the edge of a trail at the Sandy Hook unit of the Gateway National Recreation Area in New Jersey, USA. Photo taken with a Nikkor 300mm f4 EDAF lens on Kodachrome 200 film. (Date: May 1996)

[Length 8.5 in. Wingspan 10.5 in.]

This female Eastern Towhee (formerly known as the eastern race of the Rufous-sided Towhee) was photographed along the edge of a trail at the Sandy Hook unit of the Gateway National Recreation Area in New Jersey, USA. Photo taken with a Nikkor 300mm f4.5 ED lens on Kodachrome 64 film. (Date: October 1980)

[Length 7.25 in. Wingspan 9.75 in.]

This Green-tailed Towhee was photographed at Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado, USA. Photo taken with a Nikkor 300mm EDAF f4.0 lens on Kodachrome 200 film. (Date: June 1992)

[Length 7.25 in. Wingspan 9.75 in.]

This Green-tailed Towhee was photographed at Sequoia National Forest, California, USA. Photo taken with a AF-S VR Zoom-Nikkor 80-400mm f/4.5-5.6G IF-ED lens on a Nikon D7100 camera. (Date: July 2, 2013)

[Length 7.25 in. Wingspan 9.75 in.]

This Green-tailed Towhee was photographed at Piute Mountains, California, USA. Photo taken with a AF-S VR Zoom-Nikkor 80-400mm f/4.5-5.6G IF-ED lens on a Nikon D7100 camera. (Date: July 4, 2013)

[Length 8.5 in. Wingspan 10.5 in.]

The Spotted Towhee (formerly known as the western race of the Rufous-sided Towhee) breeds throughout most of the western US and the far southwest of Canada. It withdraws from the northern portion of its range in winter. Although the white-spotted black and rufous plumage of the male is quite distinctive, the bird is more often heard than seen, giving a varied trilling song often preceded by a few single notes or a raspy, wheezy call note from the cover of dense bushes, where it forages in the leaf litter. It is often heard as it rapidly hops backward, raking the leaves with its feet to expose insects and other invertebrates. Females have the same basic color pattern, but in more subdued tones. This male Spotted Towhee was photographed in the foothills near Denver, Colorado, USA. Photo taken with a 300mm f4.5 Nikkor ED lens on Ektachrome 200 film pushed to 800. (Date: May 1986)

[Length 8.5 in. Wingspan 10.5 in.]

This female Spotted Towhee was photographed at South Llano River State Park, Junction, Texas, USA. Photo taken with a Nikkor 70-200mm EDAF-S VR f2.8 lens + Nikkor TC20E II 2.0x Teleconverter (EFL=600mm) on a Nikon D100 camera. (Date: April 7, 2006)

[Length 8.5 in. Wingspan 10.5 in.]

This male Spotted Towhee was photographed at South Llano River State Park, Junction, Texas, USA. Photo taken with a Nikkor 300mm EDAF-S f4 lens + Nikkor TC20E II 2.0x Teleconverter (EFL=900mm) on a Nikon D100 camera. (Date: April 7, 2006)