Birds of North Carolina
their Distribution and Abundance
Scientific Name:
Common Name:
 Family (Alpha):
PASSERELLIDAE Members:
General Comments
Long known as the Rufous-sided Towhee, the species was split a few decades ago, and birds in the East are appropriately named the Eastern Towhee. This familiar species nests over the entire state, and winters essentially statewide, as well, though in the higher mountains it can be difficult to find in winter. It is a bird of overgrown fields, thickets, dense areas in woods, residential shrubbery, forest edges/ecotones, and other fairly brushy places. It is one of the few species that nests from the coast (maritime shrubs) to the higher peaks (in younger vegetation).
Breeding Status
Breeder
NC BRC List
The species' status on the List of Bird Species of North Carolina: either Definitive, Provisional, or Extinct, as administered by the NC Bird Records Committee. The Provisional List contains species for which there are less than three accepted sight (i.e., non-documented) records. Species of unaccepted origin are not included on the List of Bird Species of North Carolina.
Definitive
State Status
none
U.S. Status
Definitive
State Rank
S5B,S5N
Global Rank
G5
Coastal Plain
Permanent resident, with barely noticeably migratory movements. Common across the region, at all seasons. Nests commonly along the Outer Banks, as well. Peak counts:
Piedmont
Permanent resident, with migratory movements. Common across the region in summer, and common across the majority of the region in winter, but only fairly common in the western/foothill portions. Can be less common in winter during and after severe weather. Peak counts:
Mountains
Permanent resident, but less numerous in winter. In summer, common across the region, at all elevations. In winter, fairly common in the lower elevations, but uncommon between about 3,500 and 5,000 feet, and rare higher. Peak counts:
Finding Tips
****
None needed.
Distribution
Pipilo erythrophthalmus
Breeding Range
Pipilo erythrophthalmus