Saturday, March 17, 2012

White-crowned Sparrow

White Crowned Sparrow Juvenile
Just how many sparrow varieties are out there???  A lot.  And they're a difficult group to identify sometimes.  At least I know now that there isn't just one kind of Sparrow.  Today I discover the White Crowned Sparrow.
We were at Tuzigoot National Monument when I heard some rustling in the bushes. Then these two little guys popped out and jumped around on the ground.
I recognize the markings as a Sparrow but then I see the distinct crown markings on the top of the head.  My confusion begins. The problem is that when I google the description, I get a different looking bird.......and then I speak with my birder friends. 
The images that pop up are birds with black and white heads.  Come to find out that these are juveniles!!  And I guess it makes sense.  Sometimes human babies are born with a different hair color and as they get older, their hair color changes. 
Either way, they were fun little birds to watch hop around. More tomorrow....

11/25/2018-Re-reading this reminds me that we all must begin somewhere. It is a humbling experience to know that I was like most people when I first began my bird adventures.  This is a very easy sparrow to ID, but apparently not to me at this time.  This just proves we all have to begin somewhere.  We cannot grow if we do not learn. 

14 comments:

  1. Lovely little birds and good pictures Chris.

    Greetings, Joop

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  2. Wczoraj miałam podobny problem z wróblem. Też szukałam jaki to. Twojemu zrobiłaś śliczne zdjęcia :-). Pozdrawiam.*** Yesterday I had a similar problem with a sparrow. I also was looking for it. Did your beautiful pictures :-). Yours.

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  3. The juveniles do make it confusing to id the birds. I have trouble with the sparrows. Great shots of the White Crowned, they are pretty. Have a great weekend!

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  4. i don't think i've ever seen these little sparrows with the mohawk feather-do on top!!
    you're good...for IDing them.
    a friend of mine gave me a bird book...a HUGE book of all North American birds! i love flipping through there and seeing all the birds...but sometimes i dread it when i'm trying to ID one.
    ESPECIALLY...since sometimes the juveniles may look like the 'duller' female.
    hey, i'm not dull.

    nice post!! great sparrow shots!
    happy st patty day!

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  5. One or two of those W C Sparrows have found their way over to our shores Chris, causing major excitement!

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  6. They are darling! I've never seen these before. Thanks for sharing.

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  7. Super photos Chris. Juveniles can be very confusing at times :D.

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  8. I heard on the radio a few weeks ago that the common sparrow was disappearing (at least in Western Europe) and might be listed among the endangered species! Than after hearing this I realsied that i had seen any in ages...

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  9. Well captured Chris, what pretty little birds they are! We only have the two types here, the House Sparrow and Tree Sparrow, both sadly in decline particularly the Tree Sparrow which you commented on, on my blog, which has declined extremely severely and which I felt very privileged to see.

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    1. They are a such a common bird here and it's shocking to hear that they are in decline in Europe....plus you have different types of Sparrows. Hopefully it's a natural thing and they'll rebound, but if it's something being caused by pollution, poison, building, etc, it will hopefully be corrected so that you can protect this little guys. I can't imagine a world without them.

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  10. ah. thanks for explaining that they were youngsters! i usually see the B&W bike helmeted adults. :)

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  11. There are so many different varieties of these little fellows that I am very often confused about who's who...until I remember I just love enjoying them whether I know their name or not. I'm a very slack birder. :)

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  12. Great photos of the Sparrows. I definitely find all those kinds of sparrow very confusing. I had a chuckle about your comment of baby sparrow changing "hair" color!

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