Birds
Eastern Towhee
Pipilo erythrophthalmus · also called rufous-sided towhee, chewink
Deep in a tangle of forest understory, an eastern towhee kicks backward with both feet at once, sending a spray of dead leaves flying and uncovering a meal that would have stayed hidden from a bird that simply walked past.
Overview
The eastern towhee, Pipilo erythrophthalmus, is a boldly patterned ground-foraging songbird native to forest edge and shrubby habitat across the eastern United States. Its distinctive double-footed scratching technique and memorable drink-your-tea song make it one of the more easily identified birds of dense undergrowth.
A forager built for leaf litter
While many ground-feeding birds peck cautiously at the surface, the eastern towhee commits to a full-body kick with both feet together, treating the forest floor less like a place to search and more like something to actively excavate.
Status
Least Concern — present across much of the eastern United States, though some regional populations have declined with the loss of shrubby habitat.
Eastern Towhee: common questions
Why does the eastern towhee kick with both feet at once?
An eastern towhee forages using a distinctive two-footed backward kick, hopping forward slightly and flinging leaf litter backward in a single motion, a technique that efficiently exposes seeds and small invertebrates hidden beneath the surface debris of the forest floor.
Why does the eastern towhee's song sound like it's saying drink your tea?
Birders commonly describe the eastern towhee's song using the phrase drink-your-tea as a memorable way to recall its distinctive rhythm and phrasing, a mnemonic that has become one of the most widely used identification aids for the species in the field.
Why do some eastern towhees have white eyes instead of red?
An isolated population of eastern towhees in Florida has white eyes rather than the red eyes typical of the species elsewhere, a distinctive regional difference that has drawn scientific interest, though the white-eyed population is still generally considered part of the same overall species.
Where does the eastern towhee live?
The eastern towhee is native to forest edge, shrubland, and dense undergrowth habitat across much of the eastern United States, generally favouring thick shrubby cover over open forest floor for both foraging and nesting.