rufous-sided towhee
noun
A finchlike North American songbird, Pipilo erythrophthalmus (family Emberizidae), which has rufous sides and a white belly, and (in the male) black upperparts and throat.
- Recently split into two species, the eastern towhee, P. erythrophthalmus, in the east, and the spotted towhee, P. maculatus, in the west..
Origin
1950s; earliest use found in Murrelet.