This shy marshland sparrow is closely related to Saltmarsh Sharp-tailed Sparrow. Inland populations have a bright buffy-orange face with gray auriculars and a dark line behind the eye. The crown is dark brown with a blurry gray median stripe. The nape is unmarked gray. The breast and sides are buffy-orange with thin brownish streaks. The belly is white. Upperparts are chestnut with black and whitish streaks, and rufous on the wing coverts and tertials. Birds from the Canadian Maritimes and Northern Maine have slightly larger bills and more grayish backs with less defined streaking. The face and underparts are buffy, lacking the orange tones of inland races. Streaking on the underparts is blurry and gray. Juveniles are more buffy-orange overall with little or no streaking on the sides

Length: 11 (cm) Wingspan: 18 (cm)

Voice:

Song is a hiss with a lower note at the end: p-tsssssssssssh-uk.

Habitat:

Freshwater marshes, saltwater marshes, sedge bogs.

Behavior:

Extremely secretive. Usually stays close to the ground in heavy cover.

Feeding:

Diet is mostly small invertebrates, supplemented by seeds.