558 U.S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 237 part i 



During the courting season the male Green-tailed Towhee sings at frequent 

 intervals, although on the whole somewhat less often than the male fox sparrow. 

 For singing the bird mounts to the topmost twig of his selected thicket and there 

 says in rapid wheezy sequence, siip-sS-few'-si-sS, or eet-ter-te-te-te-si-si-si-seur (ac- 

 cording to the transcriptions of two different observers). Individual syllables 

 may be added or dropped, but the general plan of the song remains about the 

 same. The song is buzzy, distinctly like that of the Western Lark Sparrow, and 

 not so much like the impressively clear lay of the fox sparrow. Between songs 

 the cat-call is given at irregular intervals, and it is frequently uttered when the 

 bird is disturbed or excited. Thus when the two nests mentioned above were 

 being examined, the owners remained in the vicinity, at a distance of 30 or 40 

 feet, hopping about on the ground, exhibiting some concern, and voicing a kitten- 

 like mew-wie. 



Claude T. Barnes, who observed the greentail in a scenic setting 

 in the Wasatch mountains, Utah, contributes the following notes: 

 "About every thirty seconds he would raise his chestnut-capped head 

 towards the sky with a little twist of his neck, and, his throat fairly 

 billowing with the effort, utter a song that after many attempts I 

 felt best represented by these letters: *klu', klow', klee, klee, klee, 

 klee, Idee,' the first two syllables being strongly accented, the five 

 ending 'klees' being of ordinary finchlike character." Further 

 description of the song is provided by R. Hoffmann (1927), who says; 

 "The song varies greatly in different individuals and even the same 

 bird frequently changes his song after a few repetitions." 



Earlier writers referred to call-notes in much the same way as did 

 Grinnell and Storer (1924). H. D. Minot (1880) mentions "a petulant 

 week, and a characteristic pe-u-ee in a Towhee's voice (three syllables)," 

 while J. C. Merrill (1888) says that "besides its pleasant song and the 

 alarm note, there is another, rarely heard and apparently only when 

 the bird's curiosity is excited without alarming it; this is a loud and 

 distinct mew-wee, which is very characteristic." One of the commoner 

 calls, apparently the week or alarm note, C. G. Sibley (1955) describes 

 as "a mewing note, which may be written, 'zree' or *zew.' " If 

 these reports are considered in the light of Grinnell and Storer's 

 (1924) account, it would seem that the two types of utterance referred 

 to by Merrill in reality intergrade; if this is so, the various call-notes 

 expressing alarm, solicitousness, or mild curiosity, might relate more 

 to modifications in volume and intonation than to differences in 

 quality or syllabification. 



R. B. Rockwell and A. Wetmore (1914) could not distinguish 

 the calls of immature greentails near Golden, Colo., from those of 

 young of the local rufous-sided towhees. 



A. K. Fisher (1893) reported several instances of night singing. 



Field marks. — This towhee, which is a little larger than the house 

 sparrow, is easily recognized by its reddish brown cap, its white throat 

 bordered by black stripes, its olive green upper parts — brightest on 



