Towhee WESTERN BIRDS 



mon colored dlberti is the largest of the plain towhees. 

 It is said to be extremely shy. Major Bendire gives ita 

 alarm note as huit huit. At Phoenix it is common among 

 the mesquites and cottonwoods. It nests in willow 

 thickets, canebrake, low bushes, or mesquite." 



GENUS OREOSPIZA: GREEN-TAILED 

 TOWHEE. 



Green-Tailed Towhee: Oreospiza chlorura. 

 FAMILY— FINCHES, SPARROWS, ETC. 



Still another Towhee which differs in plumage from 

 all the others is found on the western coast ranging from 

 eastern Washington, central Oregon and Montana to 

 southern California, southeastern New Mexico, and 

 western Texas, wintering in the southern portion of its 

 range. 



This Green-tailed Towhee is about seven inches long 

 and its upper parts are grayish, save the wings and tail 

 which are a bright olive-green. The bright rufous crown 

 of the head, white stripe from eye to bill, and white 

 throat are distinctive markings which stand out as the 

 bird forages on the ground among the bushes. The edges 

 of the wings and under wing coverts are yellow, although 

 they are less frequently seen. The female is similar but 

 duller. 



This bird which is unmistakably a Towhee, breeds as 

 far south as the San Bernardino Mountain Range, Cali- 

 fornia, and there may be seen in the underbrush, or in the 

 low bushes, it being a bird of the high altitudes rather 

 than the valleys. 



It is said to have a sweet song which is finch-like in 

 quality and not unmusical. Mrs. Bailey gives the call 

 as a soft Mew, mew-ah-eep. 



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