The Spotted Towhee, a mega rare bird, was recognized as a seperate species from the Eastern Towhee(Chestnut-sided Towhee). Both versions of the towhee were previously seen in Nova Scotia but the Spotted Towhee was likely unconfirmed by modern standards as almost all rare birds are now unconfirmed without photographic or audio evidence.

This Spotted Towhee appeared about ten years ago, November 2009, and was quite cooperative if one showed patience. Photographing colourful birds in snowy evironments is always a treat.

I used the superb Sony A900 camera, with image stabilized body, and Minolta 600mm F4 lens with 1.4X extender. Sony never improved on this camera and lens combination and eventually gave up to switch to mirrorless, a dumb move, and also developed a poor Sony 500mm F4 lens at three times the price of the Minolta 600mm F4.

Spotted Towhee