Texas · Year-round resident

Eastern Towhees in Texas

When eastern towhees are present in Texas, when they nest, which native Texas plants feed them, and how to host them in a USDA 6b–10a yard.

New World sparrows (Passerellidae)Eastern TowheePipilo erythrophthalmus

Status in Texas: Year-round resident
Nesting window: April–July
Broods: 2–3 per season
Hardiness zones: USDA 6b–10a

When to expect eastern towhees in Texas

Eastern Towhees live in Texas all year. Hard freezes are brief outside the Panhandle, so most feeder birds face heat and drought stress more than cold. That makes the cold months the time your yard matters most to them: their winter diet shifts toward ragweed seed, acorns and berries.

Humid subtropical in the east and along the Gulf, semi-arid to arid in the west; long, hot summers and short, mild winters over most of the state.

Nesting in Texas

Across Texas, eastern towhees typically nest from April–July. Nest site: cup on or near the ground under shrubs. Females lay 2–6 eggs, incubate for 12–13 days, and young leave the nest after 10–12 days.

Afternoon highs regularly exceed 95°F — nest boxes need shade or light-colored, ventilated construction, and water matters as much as food.

Eastern Towhees don't use nest boxes. Keep dense native shrubs and trees such as yaupon holly, american beautyberry, coral honeysuckle for nest sites.
Delay heavy pruning of shrubs until after July.

Native Texas plants that attract eastern towhees

Of the regional native plants we track for Texas, these 8 provide food or cover eastern towhees use:

Yaupon holly

Ilex vomitoria · Shrub

Evergreen cover plus red winter berries on female plants.

American beautyberry

Callicarpa americana · Shrub

Clusters of purple fruit from late summer into fall.

Coral honeysuckle

Lonicera sempervirens · Vine

Native tubular red flowers; not the invasive Japanese honeysuckle.

Purple coneflower

Echinacea purpurea · Perennial

Leave seed heads standing through fall and winter.

Flowering dogwood

Cornus florida · Tree

Fat-rich red fall fruit taken by thrushes, bluebirds and woodpeckers.

Eastern red cedar

Juniperus virginiana · Tree

Dense evergreen roost cover and bluish 'berries' eaten through winter.

Serviceberry

Amelanchier arborea · Tree

Early-summer berries arrive exactly when nestlings are being fed.

Smooth sumac

Rhus glabra · Shrub

Red fruit heads hang on through winter.

Feeding eastern towhees through the Texas year

Towhees 'double-scratch' in leaf litter. Leave leaves under shrubs rather than raking them.

Best foods: Millet, Cracked corn, Hulled sunflower.
In Texas's winter: Hard freezes are brief outside the Panhandle, so most feeder birds face heat and drought stress more than cold.

Full diet breakdown for eastern towhees · Best feeder for eastern towhees

Frequently asked

Are eastern towhees in Texas year-round?

Yes. Eastern Towhees are year-round residents in Texas.

When do eastern towhees nest in Texas?

Nesting in Texas typically runs April–July, with 2–3 per season. Clutches are 2–6 eggs, incubated for 12–13 days.

What native plants attract eastern towhees in Texas?

Yaupon holly, American beautyberry, Coral honeysuckle, Purple coneflower, Flowering dogwood, Eastern red cedar, Serviceberry, Smooth sumac are native plants in Texas that provide food or cover for eastern towhees.

Other backyard birds in Texas

Northern Cardinal Eastern Bluebird Carolina Chickadee Purple Martin Downy Woodpecker Hairy Woodpecker American Goldfinch Tufted Titmouse White-breasted Nuthatch House Wren Blue Jay House Finch Purple Finch Ruby-throated Hummingbird Carolina Wren Mourning Dove American Robin Dark-eyed Junco White-throated Sparrow Song Sparrow Chipping Sparrow Red-bellied Woodpecker Northern Flicker Pileated Woodpecker Red-headed Woodpecker Yellow-bellied Sapsucker Red-breasted Nuthatch Brown-headed Nuthatch Brown Creeper Common Grackle Red-winged Blackbird Baltimore Oriole Orchard Oriole Pine Siskin Indigo Bunting Painted Bunting Northern Mockingbird Brown Thrasher Cedar Waxwing Tree Swallow Barn Swallow Eastern Phoebe Chimney Swift Yellow-rumped Warbler Pine Warbler Eastern Screech-Owl Wood Thrush Great Crested Flycatcher Eastern Kingbird House Sparrow European Starling Woodhouse's Scrub-Jay Bushtit Juniper Titmouse Black-crested Titmouse Anna's Hummingbird Black-chinned Hummingbird Broad-tailed Hummingbird Lesser Goldfinch Spotted Towhee Canyon Towhee Gambel's Quail Western Bluebird Mountain Bluebird Say's Phoebe Black Phoebe Acorn Woodpecker Ladder-backed Woodpecker Cactus Wren Curve-billed Thrasher Verdin Pyrrhuloxia Bewick's Wren White-crowned Sparrow Fox Sparrow Bullock's Oriole Eurasian Collared-Dove White-winged Dove Inca Dove

Sources

Timing reflects typical patterns for the region as a whole; local dates vary with elevation and year. Check the linked eBird bar charts for your county.