Black-chinned sparrow

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Black-chinned sparrow
Gray bird with an open pink bill and a long tail sitting on a bare twig at the edge of a bush
Breeding male

Least Concern  (IUCN 3.1)[1]
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Passeriformes
Family: Passerellidae
Genus: Spizella
Species:
S. atrogularis
Binomial name
Spizella atrogularis
(Cabanis, 1851)
Range of black-chinned sparrow
  Breeding
  Non-Breeding
  Year-round
  Migration
Synonyms[2]

Spinites atrogularis Cabanis, 1851
Struthus atrimentalis Couch, 1854
Spizella evura Coues, 1866
Spizella atrigularis Salvin & Godman, 1886

The black-chinned sparrow (Spizella atrogularis) is a small

nestlings
.

The species was first described by

least concern
. However, increasing global temperatures could have a significantly negative impact on its numbers.

Taxonomy

German ornithologist

Jean Louis Cabanis first described the black-chinned sparrow in 1851, using a specimen which is thought to have been collected near Mexico City. He called it Spinites atrogularis.[1][3] Within the decade, most authorities had moved it to the genus Spizella, where it has remained since. It is one of six small New World sparrows in the genus,[4] and is known to have hybridized with Brewer's sparrow, a congener.[5][6] Mitochondrial DNA studies have shown that the field sparrow is its closest relative.[7][8]
There are four recognized subspecies:

The genus name Spizella is a diminutive of the

species name atrogularis is a combination of the Latin ater, meaning "black" and gularis, meaning "-throated" (from gula, meaning "throat").[11] The common name "sparrow" is an English word which was in use prior to the 12th century. Though originally used for the house sparrow, a common European species, its usage expanded to the unrelated New World sparrows because of their similar appearance.[12]

Description

The black-chinned sparrow is a small

fledglings may have darker bills, as well as notably short tails, yellow gapes, and paler gray heads.[18]

Voice

Dickcissel male perched on a metal pole singing, with neck stretched and beak open.

Songs and calls
Listen to the black-chinned sparrow on xeno-canto

Its call is a high, soft tsip or stip.

ping pong ball.[19]

Similar species

Plain gray bird with a pinkish bill perched on a spiky plant leaf
Females, youngsters, and nonbreeding males show few or no black markings on the head, chin and throat.

The combination of gray head and body is unique among New World sparrows.[14] Though similar in plumage to the dark-eyed junco, the black-chinned sparrow is slimmer, and has a streaked back, brown edges to its wing feathers, and no white in its tail.[13][19]

Range and habitat

The black-chinned sparrow breeds in the southwestern United States and throughout much of Mexico north of the

edge habitat, and rare near the coast.[25] It is found at elevations ranging from near sea level to 2,400 m (8,000 ft) in the United States,[24] and from 300 to 2,500 m (980 to 8,200 ft) in Mexico.[26] Some birds in Utah may move into desert ecotones as part of a post-breeding dispersal[27] and some northern populations move into Chihuahuan Desert scrub during the winter.[28] Most northern populations move south – primarily into Mexico – during the winter; some move to lower elevations as well.[26][29] During migration, it is sometimes recorded in montane oak forest, but not in mixed pine-oak forest.[30]

Behavior

Small gray bird with a black-streaked brown back sitting atop a dense bush
Dense, brushy cover is preferred habitat.

Although the black-chinned sparrow appears to be relatively common where it occurs, it is an inconspicuous species that can be easy to overlook.[3] In Mexico, it is generally found singly or in pairs, and only rarely in small groups.[15] In the United States, it is sometimes found in small, loose groups, occasionally mingling with Brewer's or chipping sparrows.[31] It flies close to the ground, with an undulating flight style.[3][5] Though the species often remains in deep cover, breeding males defy that more typical behavior and pick conspicuous, exposed perches from which to sing.[3]

Feeding

The black-chinned sparrow forages on or near the ground, spending considerable time working in the same area.

granivore in the winter, and on insects as a ground-foraging omnivore in the summer.[31][32] It occasionally captures insects in flight,[8] and may feed on seeds while perched in a bush.[33] It appears to obtain all of the moisture it needs from its food during the summer, but in the winter may travel a considerable distance to reach a water source.[33]

Breeding

Much of the breeding ecology of the black-chinned sparrow is poorly known. It breeds primarily from late April into June,

parasitized by cowbirds.[3][35]

The female lays 2–5 very pale blue or bluish-green

predators.[34] Garter snakes are known nest predators.[38] Other suspected nest predators include western scrub jays, snakes, lizards, rodents, and ants.[34]

Conservation and threats

The black-chinned sparrow is one of the species protected by the

least concern, due to its substantial population and very large range.[1]

The black-chinned sparrow is known to carry several blood parasites, including members of the genera

National Audubon Society predicts that by 2080, none of its current breeding range will still be in use. Its winter range is predicted to be more stable, with some 65 percent of the current area still in use by 2080, and the total area of wintering range in the United States potentially increasing.[48]

References

Citations

  1. ^ a b c d BirdLife International 2021.
  2. ^ a b c Hellmayr 1938, p. 564.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g Rising 1996, p. 102.
  4. ^ a b c d e Gill, Donsker & Rasmussen 2021.
  5. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Stokes & Stokes 2010, p. 668.
  6. ^ Unitt 2007.
  7. ^ Zink & Dittmann 1993, pp. 408–409.
  8. ^ a b Tenney 2020.
  9. ^ a b Hellmayr 1938, p. 563.
  10. ^ Jobling 2010, p. 363.
  11. ^ Jobling 2010, p. 60.
  12. ^ Merriam-Webster 2021.
  13. ^ a b c d Rising 1996, p. 101.
  14. ^ a b c d e f g h i Sibley 2000, p. 482.
  15. ^ a b c d e Howell & Webb 1995, p. 718.
  16. ^ Dunning 2008, p. 560.
  17. ^ a b Howell & Webb 1995, p. 715.
  18. ^ Hargrove 2010, pp. 66–67.
  19. ^ a b eBird 2021.
  20. ^ Rising 1996, p. 103.
  21. ^ Oregon Natural History Information Center 2007, p. 6.
  22. ^ Semo 2008, p. 43.
  23. ^ a b Johnson et al. 2015, p. 5.
  24. ^ a b c d e f g h i All About Birds 2021b.
  25. ^ Bolger 2002, p. 150.
  26. ^ a b Howell & Webb 1995, p. 719.
  27. ^ Webb 1999, p. 37.
  28. ^ a b Rustay, Norris & Darr 2016.
  29. ^ All About Birds 2021a.
  30. ^ Ffolliott 1992, p. 67.
  31. ^ a b c d e f g h i Kaufman 2021.
  32. ^ De Graaf, Tilghman & Anderson 1985, p. 533.
  33. ^ a b Winter 2002.
  34. ^ a b c d e Hargrove 2010, p. 66.
  35. ^ a b c Unitt 1984, p. 517.
  36. ^ a b Hargrove 2010, p. 63.
  37. ^ a b Hargrove 2010, p. 67.
  38. ^ Pemberton & Carriger 1916, p. 233.
  39. ^ U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service 2020.
  40. ^ Partners in Flight 2021.
  41. ^ a b Tweit 2006.
  42. ^ Clark & Swinehart 1969, p. 111.
  43. ^ Carbó-Ramírez & Zuria 2015.
  44. ^ CDC, p. 1.
  45. ^ Bolger 2002, p. 149.
  46. ^ Crooks, Suarez & Bolger 2004, p. 456.
  47. ^ Chase et al. 2000, p. 482.
  48. ^ Audubon 2014.

Sources

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Spizella atrogularis.
Wikispecies has information related to Spizella atrogularis.
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