Abert's Towhee

Pipilo aberti

Order PASSERIFORMES - Family EMBERIZIDAE

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1. Cool Facts
2. Description
3. Similar Species
4. Sound
5. Range
6. Habitat
7. Food
8. Behavior
9. Reproduction
10. Conservation Status
11. Other Names

A large sparrow, Abert's Towhee inhabits riparian corridors in the Sonoran Desert of Arizona. Plain and rather secretive, Abert's Towhee stays in its breeding range year-round.

Cool Facts

• Abert's Towhee pairs generally remain bonded for life.
• Mitochondrial DNA analysis indicates that of the three brown towhees of the American Southwest, California and Abert's are the most closely related, even though California and Canyon towhees were once considered a single species.

• Abert's Towhee was named by Spencer Baird in 1852 for Lt. James William Abert, who obtained the first specimen.

Description

• Size: 21-23 cm (8-9 in)
• Wingspan: 28 cm (11 in)
• Weight: 40-54 g (1.41-1.91 ounces)

• Medium-sized songbird with long tail.
• Plain brown head and body.
• Black face.
• Dark rusty color under the tail.

• Breast, flanks, and belly pinkish brown.
• Bill pale gray.
• Eyes deep red.

Sex Differences

Sexes look alike.

Immature

Similar to adult, but faintly streaked on chest.

Similar Species

• Canyon Towhee has reddish crown, light brown face, light throat, and gray bill.
• California Towhee has a brown, not black face.

Sound

Call note is a high, sharp "peep." Song resembles a rapid series of call notes.

»listen to songs of this species

Range

Summer Range

Breeds along rivers and streams in Arizona and small portions of neighboring states and northern Mexico.

Habitat

Cottonwood and willow woodlands, with dense shrubs, along desert streams and rivers.

Food

Insects and seeds.

Behavior

Foraging

Scratches on the ground; sometimes probes bark on low trunks like a nuthatch.

Reproduction

Nest Type

A large open cup of leaves, bark, and weed stems, located in trees or shrubs.

Egg Description

Pale blue with brown markings concentrated on the large end.

Clutch Size

1-4 eggs.

Condition at Hatching

Helpless.

Conservation Status

Habitat loss has evidently led to widespread reduction in Abert's Towhee populations in most of its historical range.

Other Names

Tohi d'Abert (French)
Rascador desertico, Toquí Abert (Spanish)

Sources used to construct this page:

Tweit, R. C., and D. M. Finch. 1994. Abert's Towhee (Pipilo aberti). In The Birds of North America, No. 111 (A. Poole and F. Gill, Eds.). Philadelphia: The Academy of Natural Sciences; Washington, D.C.: The American Ornithologists' Union.