>Maureen Ellis wrote:
>
> Maybe the recent severe weather on the coasts (even the inner Puget Sound)
> has motivated them to migrant to the "calmer" inland (or the foothills of
> the Cascades as the case may be.) Time to consult Bent's Life Histories
> to see if anything is documented about local movement of this species.
> I'll report anything pertinent to this mystery.
>

13 subspecies of Rufous-sided Towhee's? As always, Bent is thorough.
The local bird seems to be <oregonus> and there's nothing about
movement. In fact, the compiler noted banded birds proved to be
year-round residents. Comment also about the birds always being paired,
banding establishing the same pair year after year. Attributed to
"Dawson", a wonderful description of the call "the damps of ten
thousand winters have reduced his song to a pitiful wheeze".
In Snoqualmie I've noticed more Towhees this year than any of the
previous four winters. Maybe they're more visible, blackberry thickets
having been mashed flat by the December snows. It's rare to look
outside and not see at least one red eye staring back at me.

: Walt Rector :
: Snoqualmie, WA :