CONSPICUOUSLY BLACK AND WHITE . 393 
bright new wedding suit of buff, black, and white, and 
is called the “reed bird.” 
588a. SPURRED TOWHEE. — Pipilo maculatus 
megalonyx. 
Famity: The Finches, Sparrows, etc. 
Length : 8.50-8.90. 
Adult Male: Head, neck, chest, and upper parts except rump black ; 
rump grayish; white patch on outer tail-feathers; small white 
patches on wings; belly white; flanks chestnut. 
Adult Female: Similar to male, but brown in place of black ; back in- 
distinctly streaked. 
Young: Upper parts streaked black and brown ; under parts rusty. 
Geographical Distribution: Rocky Mountains, west to interior of Cali- 
fornia ; north through Washington ; south to Lower California and 
Mexico. 
California Breeding Range: Upper Sonoran and Transition zones, east 
and south of the humid coast belt nearly throughout the State. 
Breeding Season: June 1 to July 10. 
Nest: Of bark, leaves, and small sticks ; lined with grass ; placed on or 
near the ground in bushes. 
Eggs: 4 or 5; pale greenish, finely speckled at the larger end. Size 
0.88 X 0.70. 
Remark: The San Diego towhee, P. m. atratus, is very similar to the 
Spurred Towhee, but darker and with white markings more restricted. 
THE Spurred Towhee is very like the common towhee 
or chewink of the Eastern United States in coloring, 
except for the white mixed with the black of his back and 
wings. He is a common bird in the dense woods of the 
lower Sierra Nevada mountains, breeding in the edge of 
the clearings, either on the ground or a few feet up, in 
cedar saplings and manzanita bushes. Often as I have 
seen them in a morning’s tramp the Spurred Towhee 
greatly outnumbered other birds, particularly if my way 
lay through the heavy timber. 
