
Recently split (2013) from formerly conspecific Bell's Sparrow. Upperparts are light grayish brown, with fine dusky streaking. The tail is charcoal-gray to blackish with narrow white edges. The head and nape are medium ashy-gray. The face shows a white eye ring, large white supraloral spots, and a broad white submoustachial stripe above a narrow black malar streak. The underparts are mostly white with a dark spot on the breast with variably amounts of streaking and buffy wash on the flanks. Fresh basic-plumaged adults seem to show more buff on flanks than spring adults.Juvenile is gray-brown instead of gray on the head and the face pattern is much weaker. Underparts are crisply streaked, much like a juvenile Dark-eyed Junco. Similar Bell's Sparrow is darker on the head, browner and less streaked above, shows a warm buffy wash on the flanks, and lacks white outer tail feathers.
Length: 12 (cm) Wingspan: 21 (cm)
Voice:
Song is a series of tinkling notes: tic tic tseeeee ticka-seee.
Habitat:
Interior: sage steppe. Coastal: coastal chaparral.
Behavior:
Often runs on the ground with tail held upright.
Feeding:
Forages on or near the ground for seeds and small invertebrates.
Field Notes
The "Bell's Sparrow" of coastal and interior California chaparral sings a song so unlike that of the Great Basin birds that it's scarcely recognizable as being of the same species...along with its strikingly different habitat, isolation or near-isolation from other breeding Sage Sparrows (Great Basin and "saltbush" forms), and distinctive plumage, many of us would not be surprised if this form is elevated to species status.
Citation: Personal Experience. I observe this occasionally, confident.
Expanded Life History
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Sightings
Date | Submitted By | Count |
---|---|---|
07/24/13 | Christopher Hinkle, OR | # |
06/29/13 | Dave Irons, OR | # |
06/14/12 | Bob Gunderson | # |
05/28/12 | Dave Irons, OR | 5 |
Recent Activity
Activity | Date & Time |
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David Fix added a note to Sagebrush Sparrow Notes | 7/03/2011 at 2:56PM |
Great piece of information. Most sources suggest that their songs are similar, but probably not so much to a more trained ear. With the recent split, you might want to add this comment to the Bell's Sparrow page.