As best I know, I have never had any Towhees in my yard. I see them in my travels to the western part of Virginia, but I’ve never had one come to any of my feeders. They are pretty birds and most interesting.
They look a little like a miniature Red Breasted Grosbeak, but with black, white and orange plumage.
Concerning Towhees and other birds, I recently got this email from Sherman Shifflett in Louisa
“This morning when I went down to feed my chickens, I heard a familiar sound. My Towhees had come home. Generally, they prefer the higher elevations, but for several years they have hung around the flatlands where I live in Louisa County. They are mostly ground-dwelling birds, or at least that’s where I see them. (They actually nest high in the trees). I’ve never seen them fly more than 10-12 feet off the ground, flitting up and down as they fly.
A few years ago they deserted me. They flew over to the cutover across the road. I’d hear them over there. Last year I did not see or hear them at all. I figured they moved to the mountains.
Seeing them around the blueberry bushes today made me happy. There aren’t as many now as I used to have, but I’m not complaining.”
“I also have Cardinals, Mockingbirds, Catbirds, Robins, Blue Jays, Jenny Wrens and those nasty Starlings. When I had the large dead tree, I had Flickers and Pileated Woodpeckers. Years ago I had Goldfinches. I saw two in Mineral yesterday, only six miles away. And, I heard quail calling all day one day last week. I did not see them. I hear Whippoorwills at night. That takes me back to my childhood.”