California Towhee
Pipilo crissalis
The California Towhee lives in western California, southern Oregon, and Baja California. These birds are as comfortable in rugged rural brush and chaparral as they are in urban parks or suburban gardens. Like other towhees, these birds are rarely found singly, but always in pairs year round.
These birds are intimately familiar to me and have been since my earliest childhood. As a common yardbird, I’ve been able to observe them at home and many of my favorite birding locations in San Diego County.
Many years ago, because of their similarity, these and three other towhees, the Abert’s, Canyon and White-Throated Towhee (from southern Mexico) were lumped together as “Brown Towhee.” This quartet looks and sounds similar to each other, but each has its own geographic distinction. The debate has been waged for a hundred years, but seems to be settled by the use of genetic analysis.

California Towhee(Melozone crissalis) |
Description: Goodan Ranch, Sycamore Canyon. Poway, California. San Diego County 2008-09-08. |
Date Taken: 2008:09:08 14:53 |
Location:
Gooden Ranch |
Camera Information: NIKON D2X, 800 mm, f/5.6, 1/1250 |
File Name: jcd0054CaliforniaTowhee |
© 2008 Jack Daynes, shadeTreeImaging.com |


California Towhee(Pipilo crissalis) |
Description: (Melozone crissalis) A yardbird at my home in Poway, California in San Diego County USA 2005-05-14. |
Date Taken: 2005:05:14 16:23 |
Location:
Poway Grove Park |
Camera Information: NIKON D2X, 400 mm, f/10.0, 1/250 |
File Name: JCD1320CaliforniaTowhee |
© 2005 Jack Daynes, shadeTree-Imaging.com |


California Towhee(Pipilo crissalis) |
Description: (Melozone crissalis) A yardbird at my home in Poway, California in San Diego County USA 2005-05-14. |
Date Taken: 2005:05:14 16:25 |
Location:
Poway Grove Park |
Camera Information: NIKON D2X, 550 mm, f/7.6, 1/250 |
File Name: JCD1351CaliforniaTowhee |
© 2005 Jack Daynes, shadeTree-Imaging.com |


California Towhee(Melozone crissalis) |
Description: Goodan Ranch, Sycamore Canyon. Poway, California. San Diego County. |
Date Taken: 2008:09:30 17:08 |
Location:
Gooden Ranch |
Camera Information: NIKON D2X, 800 mm, f/5.6, 1/400 |
File Name: jcd1659CaliforniaTowhee |
© 2008 Jack Daynes, shadeTreeImaging.com |


California Towhee(Pipilo crissalis) |
Description: (Melozone crissalis) A bird we met during BioBlitz-2008 day in Balboa Park. San Diego, California USA 2008-05-03. |
Date Taken: 2008:05:03 9:53 |
Location:
Balboa Park |
Camera Information: NIKON D2X, 280 mm, f/6.3, 1/160 |
File Name: JCD4794CaliforniaTowhee |
© 2008 - Jack Daynes - shadeTree Imaging |


California Towhee(Pipilo crissalis) |
Description: (Melozone crissalis) Typical ground foraging by a bird at Goodan Ranch, Sycamore Canyon. Poway, California. San Diego County USA 2009-03-29. |
Date Taken: 2009:03:29 17:15 |
Location:
Goodan Ranch |
Camera Information: NIKON D2X, 800 mm, f/5.6, 1/160 |
File Name: JCD4838.CaliforniaTowhee |
© 2009 - Jack Daynes - shadeTree Imaging |


California Towhee(Melozone crissalis) |
Description: Goodan Ranch, Sycamore Canyon. Poway, California. San Diego County 2008-07-29. |
Date Taken: 2008:07:29 16:08 |
Location:
Gooden Ranch |
Camera Information: NIKON D2X, 800 mm, f/5.6, 1/400 |
File Name: jcd9226CaliforniaTowhee |
© 2008 Jack Daynes, shadeTreeImaging.com |


California Towhee(Melozone crissalis) |
Description: Juvenile bird at the Lower Penasquitos Creek or Sorrento Valley. Near Del Mar, California. San Diego County. |
Date Taken: 2013:07:01 11:20 |
Location:
Sorrento |
Camera Information: NIKON D3X, 800 mm, f/5.6, 1/2000 |
File Name: D3X0393-CaliforniaTowhee-Juvenile |
© 2013 Jack Daynes, shadeTreeImaging.com |


California Towhee(Melozone crissalis) |
Description: 2005 Poway, California in San Diego County. |
Date Taken: 2005:05:14 16:23 |
Location:
Poway Grove Park |
Camera Information: NIKON D2X, 400 mm, f/10.0, 1/250 |
File Name: CaliforniaTowhee_JCD1320 |
© 2005 Jack Daynes, shadeTree Imaging |


California Towhee(Pipilo crissalis) |
Description: Camped with the San Diego Natural History team near Campo California. San Diego County. |
Date Taken: 2017:10:25 8:16 |
Location:
Clover Flat |
Camera Information: NIKON D5, 800 mm, f/8.0, 1/400 |
File Name: CaliforniaTowhee_D5X5351-CloverFlats |
© 2017 Jack Daynes, shadeTreeImaging.com |


California Towhee(Melozone crissalis) |
Description: Down slope, where Old Mine Road begins its climb to higher ground and the Montezuma Mines near Ranchita, California. San Diego County. |
Date Taken: 2014:10:19 8:18 |
Location:
Old Mine Road |
Camera Information: NIKON D3X, 800 mm, f/7.1, 1/1250 |
File Name: D3X0743-CaliforniaTowhee |
© 2014 Jack Daynes, shadeTree Imaging |


California Towhee(Melozone crissalis) |
Description: Lake Hodges. San Diego County, California. |
Date Taken: 2013:05:08 10:43 |
Location:
Lake Hodges |
Camera Information: NIKON D3X, 800 mm, f/7.1, 1/1250 |
File Name: D3X6781-CaliforniaTowhee |
© 2013 Jack Daynes, shadeTree Imaging |

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