Description: About 6 inches long, it has
a gray breast with a black dot in the center, a chestnut crown, brown upper
parts and two white wing bars. The bill is dark on top and yellow below. The
female lays 3 - 5 pale blue or green eggs that hatch in 12 - 13 days. The
young leave the nest in 9 - 10 days.
Habitat: American tree sparrows
are found in winter in open woodlands, gardens and brushy fields. They build
cup like nests or grass, bark and root lets lined with feathers or fur, on
or near the ground in a scrub.
Foods: They eat seeds from
weeds, scrubs or trees.
Facts: World wide there are nearly
300 species of sparrows, of which 52 have been recorded in North America
north of Mexico. Towhees, juncos, and some less well known birds such as
grass quits and long spurs are included in these totals. The only ones discussed
here are birds that occur over much of the continent and are likely to be
found by beginners.
Sparrows are small to medium sized birds
with stout conical bills adapted for crushing seeds, which are their main
diet. Seed eaters have a better chance for winter survival in the North that
do insect eaters, so sparrows are conspicuous winter residents in areas where
daytime winter temperatures are likely to remain below freezing for several
consecutive days.
Most sparrows have streaked backs. Head
and breast patterns can be used to identify most species. Each species has
its own particular nesting habitat in summer, but during migration and in
winter several species often flock together. Sparrows are short distant migrates,
wintering largely with the United States and southern Canada. They thrive
on their breeding grounds early in spring. Most species prefer fields rather
than woodlands.
The bright reddish cap together with the
single dark breast spot identifies the American Tree Sparrow. Note also that
the bill is dark above, yellowish below. The sweet song is rarely heard in
its winter range. This bird is not related to the Eurasian Tree Sparrow (5
ins.) which ha been introduced into southern Illinois and which looks like
a HOuse Sparrow with a small black cheek patch and brown crown.
Did you know?: American
tree sparrows show no interests in trees, but flirt around bushes and hedges
looking for seeds.
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