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Song Sparrow

Animals Solitary VireoSong thrush

 


Song Sparrows are common to fairly common breeding birds throughout Alberta except the mountains and the prairies. In the mountains they can occasionally be found in moist, shrubby meadows at any elevation from valley bottoms to above treeline.

Song sparrows typically learn their songs from a handful of other birds that have neighboring territories. They are most likely to learn songs that are shared in common between these neighbors.

The Song Sparrow is the most common and widespread sparrow native to North America. The most northern Song Sparrows are larger and darker -- quite different from the Song Sparrows we see in parks and on our lawns.

The Song Sparrow is one of the most familiar birds in parts of the United States, although its habit of using dense vegetation may occasionally mask its presence.

Song Sparrow
Melospiza melodia (Wilson)
Status Common in summer, uncommon in winter. Breeds.

Song Sparrow
Go where you will, throughout the length and breadth of our land and still you will find Song Sparrows. In the deserts of southwestern United States is a very pale colored race that matches perfectly the soil and surroundings.

The Song Sparrow is one of the commonest birds across Canada. It is also one of the most beneficial species as its diet consists of remarkable quantities of weed seeds and insects.

Song Sparrow Melospiza melodia. Breeder. Common in winter, spring, and fall, and uncommon to rare in summer in Tennessee Valley and Mountain regions. In Inland Coastal Plain and Gulf Coast regions, common in winter, spring, and fall.

SONG SPARROW, Fringilla melodia, Aud. Orn. Biog., vol. i. p. 126; vol. v.p. 507.
Adult Male.

Song Sparrow
Fall Sighting Information: common
Nest on or near Refuge? yes
Swamp Sparrow
Fall Sighting Information: common
Nest on or near Refuge? no ...

Song Sparrow (Melospiza melodia)
So, how much song does a song sparrow sing? Believe it or not, some field observers addressed that question and did some counting.

The Song Sparrow occurs throughout the United States, with the extreme northern birds being migrants. In the middle latitudes Song Sparrows can be found all year.

The song sparrow's nest, composed of grasses and rootlets lined
with fine grasses and long hair, is often placed on the ground.
The eggs are variable in color and form; the ground shade is whitish,
thickly marked with reddish-brown or lilac.

Santa Barbara Song Sparrow, Melospiza melodia graminea (Santa Barbara Island, late 1960s). Last seen in 1967, became extinct due to a severe wild fire in 1959 and subsequent feral cat predation. Officially declared extinct by the USFWS in 1983.

The most abundant species on modified plots in 1981 in decreasing order were Red-winged Blackbird, Common Yellowthroat, and Song Sparrow.

While birding various roads outside Valdez I had Townsend's Warbler, Downy Woodpecker, Pine Siskins, Orange-crowned Warbler, Hermit Thrush, Yellow-rumped Warbler, Fox Sparrow, Savannah Sparrow, Song Sparrow, Varied Thrush, Common Merganser, ...

All visit feeders but none use nest boxes. Buntings prefer the security of nearby shrubbery. Song Sparrows are more likely to visit open platform feeders than other types. Juncos usually feed on the ground below feeders.

If you visit, you'll see some of our tools, including several nest boxes and a table with nets, tools and notebooks. In this yard, participants study gray catbirds, song sparrows, northern cardinals, American robins, and other common backyard birds.

Among the many sparrows found in the United States are the song sparrow, the white-throated sparrow (or peabody bird), and the chipping, white-crowned, vesper, Lincoln's, fox, field, tree, and swamp sparrows.

The nests are usually built above ground in grass, low shrubs, or small trees. Some winter nests are constructed in burrows and small crevices. It also appropriates the nests of song sparrows and uses the ground runways of other rodents.

Song Sparrow (Melospiza melodia) - Franklin, NC 5/12/06
Harris's Sparrow (Zonotrichia querula). Winnabow, Brunswick Co., NC 4/25/04.
White-crowned Sparrow (Zonotrichia leucophrys). Immature, Pea Island NWR, Dare Co., NC 11/7/04.

Song Sparrow (Melospiza melodia)
Lincoln's Sparrow (Melospiza lincolnii)
Swamp Sparrow (Melospiza georgiana)
Harris's Sparrow (Zonotrichia querula)
White-crowned Sparrow (Zonotrichia leucophrys)
Dark-eyed Junco (Junco hyemalis) ...

Skimmer Slaty Finch Slaty Vireo Slavonian Grebe Small Buttonquail Small Minivet Smew Smew Snail Kite Snares Penguin Snow Bunting Snow Goose Snowy Egret Snowy Owl Snowy Sheathbill Sociable Lapwing Socorro Dove Solitary Sandpiper Song Sparrow Song ...

See also: Sparrow, Finch, Towhee, Savannah Sparrow, Swamp Sparrow