Target folder // WHCSPA
White-crowned Sparrow
Zonotrichia leucophrys · Passerellidae (New World sparrows)
A good bird for learning winter visitors: it arrives for the cold months, forages in the open in flocks, and the adult's striped head is easy to see.
First-winter plumage and call notes: Audubon Guide to North American Birds (National Audubon Society).
ID Features
- Medium-sized, long-tailed sparrow, about 6 inches long.
- Adults have bold black and white stripes on the crown and a gray face.
- Pink or yellowish bill.
- Gray underparts; brown, streaked back and barred wings.
- First-winter birds have brown and tan head stripes instead of black and white.
- Similar to White-throated Sparrow, but without the white throat or yellow spot in front of the eye.
Signals
- songA whistled song of clear notes and buzzy trills. Songs differ from region to region, like local dialects. Listen (xeno-canto XC961986)
- callShort chip notes, often heard from flocks feeding on the ground. Listen (xeno-canto XC1183603)
More recordings: xeno-canto · Macaulay Library
Where and When
- Clark County, NV
- Winter visitor, commonBrushy edges, weedy fields, lawns, and parks, feeding on the ground, often in flocks.Source: Clark County Wetlands Park bird list (Clark County Parks and Recreation, rev. March 2019): winter visitor, common. Status from one park's list, not survey data. For week-by-week detail, see eBird's Clark County bar chart.