White-throated sparrow

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White-throated sparrow
White-throated sparrow in Cap Tourmente National Wildlife Area, Quebec, Canada

Least Concern  (IUCN 3.1)[1]
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Passeriformes
Family: Passerellidae
Genus: Zonotrichia
Species:
Z. albicollis
Binomial name
Zonotrichia albicollis
(Gmelin, JF, 1789)
Range
  Year-round
  Breeding areas
  Migration areas
  Non-breeding areas
Close-up of a white-throated sparrow head, with bright white throat and yellow lore
White-throated sparrows prefer to forage on the ground.

The white-throated sparrow (Zonotrichia albicollis) is a

Passerellidae
. It breeds in northern North America and winters in the southern United States.

Taxonomy

In 1760 the English naturalist

monotypic: no subspecies are recognised.[4]

Description

The white-throated sparrow is a

Passerellidae. It measures 15 to 19 cm (5.9 to 7.5 in) in length with a wingspan of 23 cm (9.1 in). Typical weight is 22 to 32 g (0.78 to 1.13 oz), with an average of 26 g (0.92 oz).[6][7] Among standard measurements, the wing chord is 6.3 to 7.9 cm (2.5 to 3.1 in), the tail is 6.8 to 7.7 cm (2.7 to 3.0 in), the bill is 1 to 1.2 cm (0.39 to 0.47 in) and the tarsus is 2.2 to 2.4 cm (0.87 to 0.94 in).[8] They are similar in appearance to the white-crowned sparrow, but with white throat markings and yellow lores
.

There are two adult plumage variations known as the tan-striped and white-striped forms. On the white-striped form the crown is black with a white central stripe. The supercilium is white as well. The auriculars are gray with the upper edge forming a black eye line.[6]

On the tan form, the crown is dark brown with a tan central stripe. The supercilium is tan as well. The auriculars are gray/light brown with the upper edge forming a brown eye line. Both variations feature dark eyes, a white throat, yellow lores and gray bill.[6] There is variation and some individuals may show dark lateral stripes of each side of the throat.

They almost always pair with the opposite color morph for breeding. The two color morphs occur in approximately equal numbers. Both male and female white-striped birds are more aggressive than tan-striped birds during the breeding season.[9][10] The aggression is linked to an increased rate of estrogen receptor alpha expression in white-striped birds.[11]

The breast has gray/tan streaks and the streaks continue down the flanks but the belly is generally light gray. The wings are rufous with two distinct white wing bars. Sexes are morphologically similar.[6]

Behavior

Breeding

White-throated sparrows breed in central Canada and New England. They nest either on the ground under shrubs or low in trees in deciduous or mixed forest areas and lay three to five brown-marked blue or green-white eggs.

The tan and white morphs of white-throated sparrows use different reproductive strategies. Tan males invest in parental care and guard their mates from others searching for extra pair copulations (EPCs). White males invest in securing additional mates and EPCs through song advertisement and intruding into neighboring territory. Female morphs have similar differences, where tan females invest in parental care and white females solicit EPCs and engage in brood parasitism, leaving their eggs in another's nest to be raised and fed. Mating with the opposite morphs and using alternative reproductive strategies helps maintain competitive equilibrium.[12] This behaviour has been described genetically to follow from the chromosomal inversion of a supergene which acts as an extra pair of sex-determining genes, resulting in four phenotypes that reproduce in a disassortative mating pattern.[13][14][15]

Wintering and migration

In winter, this species migrates to the southern and eastern United States. They are differential migrants with females migrating farther, increasing the proportion of females at lower latitudes in the Atlantic flyway. Females are smaller so they would not perform as optimally at colder, higher latitudes, and females avoid competition with the dominant males of the winter hierarchies by migrating farther. There is also no benefit for females to be among the first to return after winter, so migrating farther allows the males to return and establish territory a few weeks before their arrival.[16] It stays year round in the Atlantic provinces of Canada. This bird is a rare vagrant to western Europe. Alongside some other species such as the cardinal, dark-eyed junco, song sparrow and chickadees, this species ranks among the most abundant native birds during winter in eastern North America.[17]

Despite a high level of conspecific rivalry within white-throated sparrows, this species is often dominated by other seed-eating winter residents, even those that are no larger than itself like the song sparrow, and thus may endure high levels of predation while foraging since restricted to sub-optimal sites at times by competition.

eastern screech-owl.[19][20]

Diet

These birds forage on the ground under or near thickets or in low vegetation by kicking backward with both feet simultaneously. They mainly eat seeds, insects and berries, and are attracted to bird feeders. Blackberries, grapes, and rose hips are some fruits they eat. One of its favorite seeds is millet, but it will also feed on black oil sunflower and different seeds.[21] During the summer, insects and other small invertebrates make up a larger portion of their diet.[22]

Song and calls

Song of the white-throated sparrow

White-throated sparrows produce song laterally through the left side of their

cadence
of "Po-or Sam Peabody, Peabody, Peabody" (or "O-oh sweet Canada, Canada, Canada") The rhythm is very regular, and the timbre could be described as pinched. These musical intervals are only approximate; to a human ear the song often sounds out of tune. The repeated note will often change in pitch very slightly, contributing to this effect.

As reported by National Geographic in 2020, ornithologists have discovered a new song for the white-throated sparrow. This bird song begins in the same way as the typical song, but with a subtle difference: the repeating triplets, as in "Peabody", become doublets, as in "Cherry", ending with a final single tone. This new tune began to appear in British Columbia, Canada, and then spread east.[24]

The white-throated sparrow also has at least two calls, in addition to its song.

References

  1. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2021-3.RLTS.T22721085A138469176.en
    . Retrieved 25 March 2022.
  2. ^ Edwards, George (1760). Gleanings of Natural History, Exhibiting Figures of Quadrupeds, Birds, Insects, Plants &c. Vol. 2. London: Printed for the author. p. 198, Plate 304.
  3. ^ Gmelin, Johann Friedrich (1788). Systema naturae per regna tria naturae : secundum classes, ordines, genera, species, cum characteribus, differentiis, synonymis, locis (in Latin). Vol. 1, Part 2 (13th ed.). Lipsiae [Leipzig]: Georg. Emanuel. Beer. pp. 921–922.
  4. ^ a b Gill, Frank; Donsker, David; Rasmussen, Pamela, eds. (July 2023). "New World Sparrows, Bush Tanagers". IOC World Bird List Version 13.2. International Ornithologists' Union. Retrieved 14 November 2023.
  5. ISBN 978-1-4081-2501-4
    .
  6. ^
    ISBN 0-679-45122-6
    .
  7. JSTOR 4158288
    .
  8. ISBN 978-0-395-73873-3
    .
  9. ^ GrrlScientist (26 May 2011). "Sparrows show us a new way to have sexes". The Guardian. Retrieved 2015-06-29.
  10. S2CID 4457436
    .
  11. ^ "Study shows how a single gene drives aggression in wild songbird". phys.org. Retrieved 2020-08-30.
  12. doi:10.1093/beheco/14.3.425
    .
  13. PMID 26804558
    .
  14. S2CID 2099899
    .
  15. S2CID 4457436
    .
  16. doi:10.1093/auk/119.2.539
    .
  17. S2CID 84017778
    .
  18. JSTOR 4534842
    .
  19. S2CID 6114288
    .
  20. hdl:2027/uc1.aa0006758312. Archived from the original
    on September 24, 2017.
  21. ^ https://abcbirds.org/bird/white-throated-sparrow/. White-throated-Sparrow. American Bird Conservancy
  22. ^ https://mdc.mo.gov/discover-nature/field-guide/white-throated-sparrow. Missouri Department of Conservation. White-throated Sparrow.
  23. doi:10.1111/j.1469-7998.1973.tb07520.x
    .
  24. ^ Sparrows are singing a new song, in a rapid, unprecedented shift. Wetzel, Corryn.National Geographic, July 2, 2020. Retrieved 5 July 2020.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to the white-throated sparrow.
Wikispecies has information related to Zonotrichia albicollis.
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