A lot of birds are very colorful for a variety of reasons, but others are rather drab. If you are a California Towhee (Melozone crissalis), your habitat is on the ground in the shrubs and chaparral, and I imagine that bright coloration might work against your continued survival in such environments where cats and foxes might be lurking (although that doesn't explain its close cousin, the Spotted Towhee).
The bird is a California native, practically an endemic species as long as one includes the Baja portion of landscape (and a very small piece of southern Oregon). I saw this one during my morning walk on the Tuolumne River flitting about in the thickets near the bottom of the dreaded stairway at the western end of the Parkway Trail (the 130 steps have become one of the most popular exercise spots in the town). I almost sent the picture at the top of this post to the recycle bin because I didn't see the bird right away. I would make a poor fox...
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