| leaves: the movement of ine branches, the sound of ae 
metallic voice will tell one, who knows, that an Oregon © 
~ Towhee is near, many times before he introduces himself. 
- Sometimes, if he has an abiding place near yours, he will 
eall a friendly greeting to you from his shelter across the 
street, as you open your door in the morning, and stand © 
making those last adjustments before starting out for the 
 day’s adventures. 
Some day, if you are not in too ok of a rush, he will 
show himself long enough to give you an impression of 
black, reddish, or rufous-brown, and white that gradually, 
by frequent glimpses, will make a definite picture of the 
Oregon Towhee on your mind. You will find that he is — 
larger than the English Sparrow, but smaller than the 
- Western Robin, whose cinnamon tints he wears on his flanks 
and which sometimes causes him to be called the “Ground 
Robin.” In the east, a variety closely resembling this 
species is called the “Chewink,” or Towhee, without a des- 
criptive adjective, while the summer resident of the Inland 
Empire is the Spurred Towhee, which is also quite common 
in California, but all have about the same habits. 
_ The prevailing color of the Oregon Towhee is a brilliant 
or a sooty black, according to the sex, for beak, head, back, 
wings and tail are jetblack in the male. You may wonder 
_ how he manages to keep his chest and the white trimming 
on the wings and tail so clean in the midst of his surround- 
ings, while to be as immaculate, yourself, would bring big 
laundry bills. When you really have become a friend of 
these wild birds you will be able to see that their white wing 
_ pattern varies in different individuals, and sometimes on 
the two wings of the same individual, and that their eyes 
~ are unusual in the bird world for they are a warm brownish- 
red. | 
If you are the hones possessor of a vine clad home, 
the Oregon Towhee may deign to become a resident in your 
Virginia creeper or English ivy. Then you will have an 
142 
