Other Scientific Names
Pipilo aberti [Sibley and Monroe (1990, 1993)], Pipilo aberti [Stotz et al. (1996)], Pipilo aberti [BirdLife International (2004, 2008)], Pyrgisoma aberti
Abert's Towhee (Melozone aberti) [XC700570]
by Paul Marvin from Rodeo, Hidalgo County, New Mexico, United States (call)
Abert's Towhee (Melozone aberti) [XC408552]
by Frank Lambert from 66th Ave\/Tyler Street, Thermal, Riverside County, California, United States (call)
Subspecies
Formerly placed in genus Pipilo and sometimes in Melozone. Molecular analysis indicates that California Towhee (Melozone crissalis) is a sister-taxon. Geographical variation clinal.
Proposed subspecies voorhiesi (described from c. 15 km south of Tucson, in Arizona) treated as synonym of dumeticolus.
The following 3 subspecies are recognised:
dumeticolus (Baird, 1852) - South-western USA from south-western Utah south through Colorado Valley in south-eastern Nevada to south-eastern California, and eastern along Gila R in southern Arizona, also extreme north-western Mexico (extreme northern Baja California and north-western Sonora).
aberti (Baird, 1852) - South-western USA in southern Arizona and south-western New Mexico.
vorhiesi (Phillips, 1962) - Southern Arizona (Tucson region) to extreme south-western New Mexico.
BirdLife International Species Factsheet