Spotted Towhee
Spotted Towhee has surged: up 433% on the route-weighted index since 1969.
About the Spotted Towhee
A boldly patterned, red-eyed towhee of western brush and woodland edges, the Spotted Towhee rummages noisily in leaf litter.
- Size
- 6.5–8.5 in long, about 1.4 oz (17–21 cm, 40 g)
- Habitat
- Woodlands and forest edges, including wooded suburbs and parks.
- Diet
- Insects, seeds and berries scratched from the ground.
- Range
- Recorded on 1,063 Breeding Bird Survey routes across 17 states, most concentrated in the Southern Rockies / Colorado Plateau.
- Family
- Passerellidae · Forest birds
- Conservation
- Least Concern
Notable Spotted Towhee Trends
Spotted Towhee has surged in surveyed states: up 433% on the route-weighted index since 1969.
Spotted Towhee Population Forecast
If the recent trend holds, Spotted Towhee is projected to rise about 15% by 2029 — from 2.0 in 2024 to a central estimate of 2.3 (95% range 1.6–2.9). A 5-year backtest shows a typical error of ±30%, with 80% of held-out values landing inside the 95% band.
| Year | Projected index | 95% low | 95% high |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 2.2 | 1.6 | 2.8 |
| 2026 | 2.2 | 1.6 | 2.8 |
| 2027 | 2.2 | 1.6 | 2.8 |
| 2028 | 2.2 | 1.6 | 2.9 |
| 2029 | 2.3 | 1.6 | 2.9 |
Where the Spotted Towhee Is Detected
BBS routes recording Spotted Towhee, sized by most recent count.
Spotted Towhee Population Trend by State
| Arizona | +166% | 1970 | 41 |
| California | +26% | 1970 | 220 |
| Colorado | 19× | 1971 | 98 |
| Idaho | +108% | 1971 | 46 |
| Kansas | insufficient data | n/a | 6 |
| Montana | +233% | 1970 | 86 |
| Nebraska | 12× | 1971 | 38 |
| Nevada | +38% | 1979 | 37 |
| New Mexico | +302% | 1970 | 55 |
| North Dakota | -58% | 1969 | 19 |
| Oklahoma | insufficient data | n/a | 1 |
| Oregon | -17% | 1970 | 113 |
| South Dakota | +250% | 1969 | 43 |
| Texas | -78% | 1997 | 5 |
| Utah | +153% | 1970 | 93 |
| Washington | +55% | 1970 | 92 |
| Wyoming | +125% | 1970 | 70 |
Spotted Towhee Population Trend by Region
Bird Conservation Regions are the ecological unit for trends.
| Northern Pacific Rainforest | -11% | 1970 | 127 |
| Great Basin | +308% | 1970 | 179 |
| Northern Rockies | -36% | 1970 | 159 |
| Prairie Potholes | +112% | 1969 | 25 |
| Sierra Nevada | +91% | 1970 | 39 |
| Southern Rockies / Colorado Plateau | +270% | 1970 | 198 |
| Badlands and Prairies | +150% | 1969 | 107 |
| Shortgrass Prairie | 12× | 1979 | 29 |
| Central Mixed Grass Prairie | +615% | 1971 | 29 |
| Coastal California | +38% | 1970 | 110 |
| Sonoran and Mojave Deserts | +19% | 1971 | 10 |
| Sierra Madre Occidental | +570% | 1970 | 31 |
| Chihuahuan Desert | +125% | 1972 | 17 |
Spotted Towhee Conservation Status
Least Concern
The IUCN Red List rates this species as Least Concern. Our route-weighted index shows it up about 433% since 1969.
Source: USGS North American Breeding Bird Survey, retrieved 2026-05-22. Trend is a route-weighted relative-abundance index, not an absolute population.