Young Towhee

Day 55: The cold weather has brought the Spotted Towhees out by the dozen. Although I see them here in the summer occasionally, I think of them as a "winter bird," doing their peculiar hop-back scratching step as they hunt for fallen seed in the snow. This one is a young bird. How can you tell? Pipilo maculatus juveniles have brown irises; their eyes will change to bright red at adulthood. Primarily ground-feeders, these birds' colouration gives them excellent camouflage in leaf litter, the pattern of black and white simulating broken shadows. Handsome birds, Towhees, but those red eyes make the adults look like they've had too much espresso.