Is Santa Cruz spotted towhee singing a song of unrequited love?

DEAR JOAN: This will be the fourth spring during which I get a visit from a spotted towhee. I’ve already heard and seen him. I feel sure it is the same one.

He mostly sits in a Japanese maple tree and he “trills” from morning to night through summer.

Is he looking for a mate? I don’t think there is one. Don’t you think he could find a better territory?

It’s a little annoying, but I get used to it. The issue I have is that this unrequited love is just too sad.

— Rosemary Sarka, Santa Cruz

DEAR ROSEMARY: It could very well be the same spotted towhee serenading you this season. Although life for birds can be harsh, towhees can live quite a few years. California has the record for the longest lived towhee in the wild, who made it to age 11.

Contrary to your belief that your yard might not be the best spot for love, your visitor obviously disagrees. A male towhee finds a place up high and can spend up to 90 percent of its time sending out that trill, calling for a mate. If this is the same bird, he might not be calling for a mate, but for his mate.

Towhees are primarily monogamous, but only during mating season. There’s a courtship, then a mating, and then the pair raise their offspring. After that, they go their separate ways, but might join up again for the next mating season. They also may choose other mates each year.

The trilling can continue for a short time after the love birds find each other, but the male soon becomes obsessed with protecting the territory, his mate and their nest. He might continue to sing as way of warning others to back off.

If you notice the towhee cutting back on the calling, it’s a good sign a love match has been made. You can instead listen for a soft, lisping song, which is how the two birds communicate with each other.

So don’t be sad about the trilling; be hopeful for love.

DEAR JOAN: From what I’ve read no animal or rodent eats coffee grounds. However when I put coffee grounds outside they’re gone within a day or two. We have deer, raccoons, skunks, rabbits, squirrels, opossums, mice and rats. Somebody is guilty no matter what they say. Who do you pick?

— Diane Brauch, Los Altos Hills

DEAR DIANE: I’m not saying that the odd deer, raccoon, skunk, rabbit, squirrel, opossum, mouse rat wouldn’t sample coffee grounds, but it’s highly unlikely and if they did, it would only be a sampling, not a feast. The bitter taste discourages some animals, and others are put off by the smell.

Critters that do eat coffee grounds are earthworms. They love them. I don’t know if they could go through a supply in a day or two, but depending on how much you’re putting out, they could easily consume them in a week, leaving behind some great fertilizer in your garden.

If you’re using coffee grounds for soil and plant health, be sure to work them into the soil. Don’t just pile them on top unless you’re using them to repel pesky creatures.

The Animal Life column runs on Mondays. Contact Joan Morris at AskJoanMorris@gmail.com.