Melozone fusca
adult
The Canyon Towhee is a rather pale ground-dwelling songbird. The sexes are similar. Adults have gray-buff body plumage, darker above than below, and a subtly darker tail. The head has a reddish-brown cap and a pale gray-buff face with a yellowish eyering. The buffish-yellow throat is framed by a dark lateral line and a row of dark streaks on the breast, below which is a dark central spot. The rest of the underparts are gray-buff, palest on the belly and with a pinkish-orange undertail. Juveniles are similar to an adult but with a less colorful crown, faint streaking on the underparts, and indistinct pale wingbars.
The Canyon Towhee is present year-round in southwest U.S.A. It feeds on the ground, often in cover, and consequently is easy to overlook.
adult
FACT FILE
LENGTH 8.5 in (21.5 cm)
FOOD Invertebrates and seeds
HABITAT Arid canyons
STATUS Locally common resident
VOICE Song is a series of fluty whistles, with some repetition. Call is a shrill chee-lup
