northeast-flora-and-fauna

I photographed these 2 commonly-seen sparrows about 13 minutes apart, but their lineages are "worlds" apart. The 1st is a House Sparrow , more commonly seen near human dwellings. They are Old World sparrows , and perhaps because they evolved longer around humans, they're fairly tolerant of humans.  And the 2nd is (another) Song Sparrow , which is a New World sparrow that seems willing to sing for us but generally won't nest especially close to us. Although we have a lot of Old World sparrows here in the US, almost all of them are House Sparrows, and here in NJ you're unlikely to find any other Old World sparrows. As you might suspect, all the Old World sparrows and all the New World sparrows are more closely related to the other sparrows of their "world" than they are to sparrows of the other "world".  And while Song Sparrows are considered skilled and prolific singers, the House Sparrow vocalization mostly sounds like they're calling you ...

The Grassland Birds were putting on a meadow concert last spring. While the Red-winged Blackbird's song may be a bit louder, the Song Sparrow's song is more classically melodious. And as far as I could tell, neither was really trying to harmonize with the other. If anything, they seemed to be trying to sing over 1 another. Such is life when the birds are throwing a concert. Their goals are also somewhat different. While the Song Sparrows look for that 1 special female, the Red-winged Blackbirds think that the more females they can attract, the better. June 3, 2023 at John Clyde Native Grassland Preserve Photo 300857827, (c) jpviolette, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC) June 3, 2023 at John Clyde Native Grassland Preserve Photo 300857865, (c) jpviolette, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)

They do more than just sing; I'm thinking this Song Sparrow was in the process of building a nest and went out to get additional materials. This particular Song Sparrow is probably not a singer since females build the nests while males do the singing, and those certainly look like materials that would make a cozy nest [1]. (Finding some stiff grasses and flexible twigs are probably similar to a trip to Home Depot or Lowes for humans.) This nest will probably be on the ground or within 4 feet of the ground, hopefully getting some protection by being inside a shrub of some sort. They'll frequently have 2+ clutches of eggs in a single season; this is almost certainly the 1st clutch that she's preparing for. May 25, 2023 at Duke Farms Photo 292817981, (c) jpviolette, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC) [1] Since the female builds the nest, it's the female that's the handyman of the marriage. 

Do you want to go for a nature walk or attend a concert? Sometimes you can do both! The male Song Sparrow may be trying to serenade an available female but there's no reason you can't enjoy his tunes too. As both 1 of our most common sparrows and dedicated singers - I also heard them singing here and here - these birds are spotted more than many of their peers. I suspect if these guys were a little colorful they'd be 1 of our most popular and recognized birds, but their coloring is straight out of the standard sparrow playbook: mostly brown, some white with brown speckles. (They're definitely more David Crosby than Elton John.) May 18, 2023 at Willowwood Arboretum Photo 292812758, (c) jpviolette, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)

A tiny branch to you and me is a very functional platform for a Song Sparrow . In my area the Song Sparrow is the prototypical sparrow: Learn what they look like and you'll recognize (with the possible exception of the Dark-eyed Junco [1]) the most abundant species of one of our most abundant bird families: New World Sparrows . Use the differences between Song Sparrows and other sparrows as a way to learn to ID the other sparrows. (I'm still not great at this myself.) Though Song Sparrows know more than 1 song (up to 20 actually), they don't switch between their songs very often. You'll frequently hear 1 singing basically the same song over and over, but hours later might be singing a different tune. Like jazz musicians though, they'll frequently add some improvisation to their basic songs. May 9, 2023 at Duke Farms Photo 282306455, (c) jpviolette, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC) May 9, 2023 at Duke Farms Photo 282306468, (c) jpviolette, some rights reserved (CC B...

Here's a Savannah Sparrow I met last spring. These sparrows look a bit like the very common Song Sparrow , though they've got some light yellow around the eyes. (Their breast striping doesn't converge in the middle either, though you can't see that very well in my picture.) Savannah Sparrows don't have any extremely close relatives, though perhaps that will change. It sounds like there is some evidence that 1 subspecies, the Large-billed Sparrow , really ought to be a separate species. Bird taxonomy marches on! While I'd like to tell you that I saw this sparrow in a savannah , I don't think we have true natural savannahs in New Jersey [1]. It is possible that I saw it in a meadow, which might be a little like a temporary savannah. In actuality though, the Savannah Sparrow was named after Savannah, Georgia , where the species was 1st recognized [2] back in 1811. May 4, 2023 at Duke Farms Photo 278563451, (c) jpviolette, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC) [1] My...

As you might expect, Song Sparrows like to sing, and I like the way they rear their heads back when they're in "concert mode". For (relatively) small birds, they really can belt out a tune . There have been 52 recognized subspecies, but currently ornithologists agree on 25 subspecies . While a widespread species like the Song Sparrow can be expected to have some variations, 25 is a pretty high number of subspecies. Most of these differences appear to be superficial visual variations though, without all that much genetic diversity. It's unlikely that any of them will be spun off into separate species unless taxonomists radically change the species/subspecies requirements. March 29, 2023 at Duke Farms Photo 270606240, (c) jpviolette, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)

Here's a Song Sparrow from last autumn. I suspect I saw the bird fly into those bushes since it was reasonably well hidden (any probably a fair distance away). And although it was hidden pretty well, I'm suspicious that this location was chosen for the food, most likely those red berries. Though many birds prefer eating insects and other invertebrates, cooler weather eliminates many invertebrates and leaves most of the others hunkering down for the winter. In response, many birds that winter in my area go primarily vegetarian as winter nears, and seeds and berries loom as alternative food sources. If it's winter and you see a patch rich in berries, it's usually worth looking around to see if the local birds are taking advantage of the pantry. More about Song Sparrows is in this video . October 16, 2022 at Negri Nepote Native Grassland Preserve Photo 250354688, (c) jpviolette, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)

Here's a sparrow that I didn't see much of this winter but is in New Jersey all year round: the Song Sparrow . (This picture was from last autumn.) Though this little fella was probably between songs, it's not unusual to hear them out there singing . Similar to yesterday's Dark-eyed Junco , these are very numerous and very widespread sparrows. They don't go quite as far into Canada/Alaska as the juncos, but they can be found in all lower 48 states and approximately the southern half of Canada. They're also known for their regional variations, though I wouldn't consider the variations to be as evident as with the Dark-eyed Juncos. Similar to the Dark-eyed Junco, the Song Sparrow is a pretty small bird. Both of them are under an ounce in weight; you need to describe them in grams if you want to avoid fractions. (The Song Sparrow is listed in my field guide as 20 grams, just slightly bigger than the Dark-eyed Junco at 19 grams. I'm sure this means that alth...

Here on the edge of a field there is (SURPRISE!) a Field Sparrow . (I've talked about these birds before .) This picture was taken in the middle of summer when most Field Sparrows (and other birds) are starting/raising families. These sparrows normally build nests on or within 10 feet of the ground. Although males may help furnish building materials, the females do all the nest design/carpentry.  As their name suggests, these birds are all about the fields, and generally avoid areas with substantial human activity. This means that they're not too crazy about places like New Jersey where much of the land is suburban or urban. My understanding is that they're doing better on the plains in the middle of the country. Though they may not be crazy about humans, they're not entirely antisocial. This time of the year they will join flocks of other sparrows; apparently Song Sparrows and White-throated Sparrows (both probably more numerous around here) are among their favorite ...

I took these pictures 40 minutes apart and in somewhat different areas, so these individuals many have never met (which would be fortunate for one of them). First, here's a picture of one of our most commonly seen large birds, a Red-tailed Hawk . July 25, 2021 at Duke Farms Photo 148652475, (c) jpviolette, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC) And following that, I spotted one of our most commonly seen sparrows, a Song Sparrow . July 25, 2021 at Duke Farms Photo 148652819, (c) jpviolette, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC) There's no chance of these guys being friends, though the Red-tail probably does like Song Sparrows as a side order. My impression is that Red-tails aren't maneuverable enough to rely on catching passerines (and similarly-sized birds like woodpeckers and pigeons), though if they can get the drop on an unwary one they won't hesitate to do so. I'd expect the Red-tail to have more hunting success with rabbits, rodents, and maybe some snakes or turtles. In its...

Talk about your clichés; I noticed this Song Sparrow putting on a show singing his heart out. This is typical behavior for the males, who find a perch and sing to attract the attention of a female. It probably sounded like this .  He probably learned this song from his dad, though if he was raised near another male that could also have influenced his song. June 2, 2021 at Negri Nepote Native Grassland Preserve Photo 136367570, (c) jpviolette, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)