Target folder // ABETOW
Abert's Towhee
Melozone aberti · Passerellidae (New World sparrows)
A plain brown bird with a black face, scratching under the brush near water. Southern Nevada is at the edge of its small range. Listen for the single call note, then wait for it to step out.
ID Features
- The longest member of the New World sparrow family, about 8 to 9.5 inches, much of it tail.
- Plain warm buffy brown all over.
- Black face around a pale gray bill.
- Forages on the ground in dense brush, scratching at the ground like other towhees.
- Usually stays hidden under cover.
Signals
- callA single bell-like note. The song is a rapid series of the same notes. Listen (xeno-canto XC497427)
More recordings: xeno-canto · Macaulay Library
Where and When
- Clark County, NV
- Year-round residentDense brush near water, including streamside thickets, pond edges, and mesquite. Avoids dry, open hillsides.Source: Clark County Wetlands Park bird list (Clark County Parks and Recreation, rev. March 2019): resident, common, nests here. The Desert National Wildlife Refuge bird list (U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, May 2018) lists it as occasional, which fits a bird of brushy water edges. Status from site lists, not survey data. For week-by-week detail, see eBird's Clark County bar chart.