I think towhee numbers have been building the last couple of years - I
agree there are many groups of 3 - 6 birds in any small area, summer or
winter. High count for me was on the Duncan(BC) bird count, when I
walked a 100 meter stretch of rural road and was watched by 25 towhees
in that distance.

As for the song, I always thought "towhee" was a transliteration of
"to-wheeee" and not "Toe-hee", and I think they say that sometimes.
Which raises the question of which is the correct pronunciation:
TOE-hee, too-WHEE, or TOOEY?

As for spots, yes there is a real wide range in Spotted Towhees; so
much so that I don't really think it is a good field mark for
separating them from Eastern Towhees.


Bruce Whittington
Ladysmith, BC
mailto: fieldnat at pacificcoast.net