Toxostoma bendirei is found in south-west USA and north-west Mexico, from southern Nevada, southern Utah and south-western Colorado south to central Sonora. Its status in Baja California is unresolved^1,3. Within this range its distribution is patchy and in some cases poorly known (owing to low observer density in desert regions and confusion with other similar Toxostoma species)¹. Individuals in the northern portion of the range migrate south in the winter and overlap with more southern residents^1,3. The species is now so rare that trends cannot be estimated reliably from Breeding Bird Survey data², but declines between 1966 and 2003 equate to 34.5%.