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Showing posts with label Sparrow. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Sparrow. Show all posts
4/15/18
Abert's Towhee
Abert's Towhee
(Leptoptiloscrumeniferus)
Photographed in the wild, Tucson, Arizona Apr 2010
With one of the smallest total
distributions of any U.S. birds species, the Abert's Towhee is much sought
after by birders who must travel to the desert Southwest to observe it. Very
large sparrow that lives in the Sonoran Desert of Arizona. Plain and rather
secretive, Abert's Towhee stays in its breeding range year-round.
The greatest threat to the species in
its limited range is the continued loss and fragmentation of its preferred
desert riparian habitat. Abert's Towhee is often a rather inconspicuous bird
because it forages in thick underbrush and seldom flies any great distance.
White Crown Sparrow
White-crowned
Sparrow
(Zonotrichialeucophrys)
Photographed in the wild, Tucson, Arizona Mar 2010
Elegantly
marked in gray, brown, black, and white, the White-crowned Sparrow is one of
the best-studied songbirds in North America. Much of our knowledge of bird song
and development is based on studies of this species.
A
young male White-crowned Sparrow learns the basics of the song it will sing as
an adult during the first two or three months of its life. It does not learn
directly from its father, but rather from the generalized song environment of
its natal neighbourhood. Males on the edge of two dialects may be bilingual and
able to sing both dialects.
Lark
Lark
Sparrow
(Chondestesgrammacus)
Photographed in the wild, Tucson, Arizona Mar 2010
Unlike many songbirds, the Lark
Sparrow walks on the ground rather than hops. It hops only during courtship. A courting male Lark Sparrow crouches
on the ground, holds his tail up at a 45 degree angle from the ground, spreads
the tail feathers to show off the white tips, and then struts with its wings
drooping so that the wingtips nearly touch the ground. When the female is receptive,
the male gives her a small twig just before copulation.
The Lark Sparrow often takes over old
mockingbird or thrasher nests instead of building its own. Occasionally the
eggs and young of two species are found in the same nest, suggesting that the
Lark Sparrow shares the nest with the other bird.
Java Sparrow
Java Sparrow
(Padda
oryzivora)
Photographed at
Bird Kingdom, Niagara Falls, Canada Feb 2012
In the wild at
Royal Kona Hotel, Hawaii Mar 2014
The Java sparrow originates from Southern Asia, in
Java, Bali, and Sumatra. Here they are regarded as a serious agricultural pest
in rice fields. Many thousands of wild Javas are destroyed each year as farmers
wage a never ending war against them. Despite this battle, the species
continues to thrive in its native homeland and is very abundant.
Java
Rice Birds have been successfully introduced and naturalized in many regions
around the world. In the wild, javas breed after the rainy season comes to an
end.
First introduced in 1867 in Hawaii and reintroduced in
the late 1960's. Abundant in Hawaii and are actually becoming endangered in
their native range. They are also illegal to keep as pets in some parts of the
mainland due to the threat of destroying specific agricultural crops. Found in
open grassy fields during the day. At night they often form communal roosts
with Mynas.
House Sparrow
House
Sparrow
(Passer domesticus)
Photographed in the wild, Toronto, Canada Apr 2009
The house sparrow
was introduced to North America in the early 1850s from England. During the
past century they have become the most abundant of small birds and can be found
all over. These birds return to their birthplace after every migration (a
characteristic known as philopatric). Because of this, local populations
have adapted to the colour of their habitat resulting in 15 distinct
subspecies.
Male House Sparrow has black-streaked brown upper parts and pale gray under parts. The wings are brown with a single white bar. The cheeks and crown are pale gray, contrasting with a black throat, upper breast, and bill. Female House Sparrow lacks the black throat, is paler overall and has a buff eye stripe. The bill is pale buff.
Chipping Sparrow
Chipping Sparrow
(Spizellapasserine)
Photographed in the wild, Tucson, Arizona Apr 2010
A crisp pretty sparrow whose bright
rufous cap provides a splash of color and makes adults fairly easy to identify.
They are also the only sparrow possessing a gray rump.
Chipping Sparrows are common across
North America wherever trees are interspersed with grassy openings. Their loud,
trilling songs are one of the most common sounds of spring woodlands and
suburbs
Chipping sparrows are ground foragers
feeding on insects, spiders, and seeds. They form small flocks and may join
mixed-species
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