Field Sparrow

Scientific Name

Spizella pusilla

Family

Emberizidae (sparrows, longspurs, buntings) in the order Passeriformes

Description

Field sparrows are relatively small and slender and have a rounded head. Upperparts are streaked with dark rusty brown and gray, with a gray head, rusty side stripes on the crown, and a rusty eye line and cheek. There is a distinct white eye-ring, and two whitish wing bars. Adult underparts grayish, with warm buffy or reddish tan sides and flanks. The bill and legs are pink. Immatures are streaked below. Typical song is a long series of down-slurred whistled notes, accelerating like the rhythm of a dropped ball: tew, tew tew-tew, tututututututuuu. Call is a chip or a short trill.

Similar species: To separate the field sparrow from other sparrows with a rusty cap, remember that field sparrows have a distinct white eye-ring, a pink bill and bright pink legs, a warm (not gray) plain breast, a rusty (not black) eyeline, and gray (not whitish) eyebrow. Compared to American tree sparrows, field sparrows are much smaller and lighter, with a pink (not two-colored) bill and plain breast (lacking a central black spot).

Size

Length: 5¾ inches (tip of bill to tip of tail).

Field sparrows are common nesting birds throughout Missouri, but they retreat to the southernmost counties to ride out the winter.

Habitat and Conservation

Lives in weedy, brushy fields, glades, and overgrown pastures. Field sparrows are generally not found in cultivated fields, but in overgrown ones. Many people first notice this bird when they hear the male's distinctive loud, clear song, usually sung from a prominent place such as the top branches of a small tree or a fence post. In winter, field sparrows often join mixed flocks of sparrows. Scan such groups for smaller, tanner birds staying close to the ground; those could be field sparrows.

Food

Field sparrows forage on or near the ground for insects and small seeds, especially those of grasses and weeds. Like many other birds, in winter they eat mostly plant matter, in this case seeds; in summer they eat a larger percentage of insects, which are plentiful in the warm months and which provide a high-protein diet for their growing young.

Status

Common summer resident; as winter resident, uncommon in the south and rare in the north.

Life Cycle

Human Connections

The famous naturalist Thoreau described the field sparrow's song: It "jingles [its] small change, pure silver, on the counter of the pastures." Nature writing is recognized as a distinct literary genre, embracing scientific facts as well as human elements such as conservation, philosophy, autobiography, spirituality, and art.

Ecosystem Connections

Field sparrows are one of the many species parasitized by brown-headed cowbirds, which lay their eggs in the sparrows' nests, to the detriment of the host birds' own young. But in places where this parasitism is common, field sparrows apparently learn to recognize and attack cowbirds.

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Where to See Species

Aspinwall Bend

The United States Army Corps of Engineers has purchased this area as part of the Missouri River Mitigation Project.

Davisdale Conservation Area

Davisdale Conservation Area is in Howard County, 15 miles west of Columbia and seven miles east of Boonville on Highway 40.

Foxglove Conservation Area

The Conservation Department purchased the area from Claude H. and Marian E. Fine in 1990.

About Birds in Missouri

About 350 species of birds are likely to be seen in Missouri, though nearly 400 have been recorded within our borders. Most people know a bird when they see one — it has feathers, wings, and a bill. Birds are warm-blooded, and most species can fly. Many migrate hundreds or thousands of miles. Birds lay hard-shelled eggs (often in a nest), and the parents care for the young. Many communicate with songs and calls.

Local Contacts