Birds ’round Here: White-crowned Sparrow

RidgetopFarm&Garden — Mon, 07 Aug 2017 18:46:44 +0000

The white-crowned sparrow is common around our house in the foothills of Oregon’s coast range. We have the Pacific subspecies with a yellow beak.

IDENTIFICATION

HEAD: black and white striped
THROAT: light gray or white
BREAST: gray
BELLY: gray
WINGS: streaked brown, faint white bars
TAIL: long
BACK: streaked brown and gray
BILL: yellow
EYE: brown

ADULT

IMMATURE

I’m not 100% positive, but I believe this to be an immature sparrow molting. He/she is a bit rough looking.

A young one with and adult.

HABITAT

White-crowned sparrows prefer the edges of shrubby woodlands.

We tend to see the golden-crowned sparrow more during the winter months and the white-crowned sparrow the remainder of the year.

FEEDING

White-crowned sparrows forage on the ground searching for insects. They will also catch them mid air.

The sparrows also like seeds, whether from our feeder or wild grasses. They will also choose berries to eat.

FRIENDS & FAMILY

FAMILY: New World Sparrows
SCIENTIFIC NAME: Zonotrichia leucophrys

Flock of white-crowned sparrows bathing in our pond.

White-crowned sparrow with his cousin, the golden-crowned sparrow.

NESTING

Around here, I find their nests a foot or two above ground hiding in a shrub.

Mama sparrow sits on her eggs about 12 days before they hatch. The hatchlings leave the nest at about a week to week and a half old.

We have to watch for the little guys, as they are sometimes on the ground.

PHOTO GALLERY

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Birds of 2013: Week 31

RidgetopFarm&Garden — Tue, 13 Aug 2013 06:55:56 +0000

Every year barn swallows make nests in the eaves of our house or in Farmer John’s Man Shack. This year they built one of their nests in a perfect place for baby observing. They built it above our front porch. We are able to see the birds every time we walk outside & while inside through a window.

No new birds this week, but it’s been a lot of fun watching these babies grow.

We watched the barn swallow(s) build a nest & eventually sit on 4 eggs. One day Farmer John noticed a broken egg under the nest.

Day 1
Three babies hatched!

Day 2
The 4th baby hatched!

Day 3

Mama & Papa take turns feeding the babies. When one comes to the nest, the other flies off.

Day 4

Day 5

Day 7

Day 8

Day 10

Day 12

Day 14

Day 17

Day 19

Day 22
The last day I saw them in the nest.

BIRD SPECIES SEEN IN 2013:

SEEN SO FAR = 82 of 100

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