Spotted towhee

Pipilo maculatus

The Spotted towhee (Pipilo maculatus) is a bird found in United States and Canada. Brushy hillsides and woods in western North America. It eats insects and other small invertebrates, seeds and nuts and fruit. The IUCN Red List lists it as Least Concern.

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Scientific name	Pipilo maculatus
Region	North America
Found in	United States and Canada

🏡 Where the Spotted towhee lives

Brushy hillsides and woods in western North America.

🍽️ What it eats

🐛 Insects & bugs50%
🌰 Seeds & nuts30%
🍎 Fruit20%

A rough guide to its diet over a year. Source: EltonTraits (Wilman et al. 2014).

Conservation status

LCNTVUENCREWEX

Least ConcernThere are plenty of these birds.

💡 It scratches leaves on the ground with both feet at once.

Hear the Spotted towhee

Recorded by Don Profota (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0), xeno-canto XC1180734. Trimmed to a few seconds.

Questions about the Spotted towhee

Where does the Spotted towhee live?

The Spotted towhee lives in United States and Canada. Brushy hillsides and woods in western North America.

What does the Spotted towhee eat?

insects and other small invertebrates (about 50%), seeds and nuts (about 30%), fruit (about 20%). These are rough shares of its diet over a year, from the EltonTraits database.

Is the Spotted towhee endangered?

There are plenty of these birds. Its IUCN Red List category is Least Concern.

More birds from North America

Sources: IUCN Red List (via Wikidata), EltonTraits 1.0 (Wilman et al. 2014), GBIF sightings for countries, Wikipedia. Last updated 2026-10-19.