Sunday, November 22, 2020

White-Crowned Sparrow

Adult white-crowned sparrows have bold white and black stripes on their heads, kind of like a University of Michigan football helmet, but with different colors, which makes them very easy to identify. The face is gray, the upper parts are brown with a barred pattern, the underparts are gray and they have a short triangular shaped bill that is orange to yellow. 
An immature sparrow, at Humboldt Bay NWR.

A mature sparrow. 
Immature birds have the same stripes on the head, but the stripes are brown and gray and make it look like a completely different bird. 
An immature white-crowned sparrow in Live Oak Canyon on November 15th. 

A mature sparrow in Live Oak Canyon, also on November 15.

A mature sparrow in Live Oak Canyon.
Earlier this year I saw several at the Humboldt Bay NWR, I've seen them in Live Oak Canyon in Redlands, near our home, and I saw a bunch of them in Morongo Valley yesterday. 
This photo, and those that follow, were taken in Morongo Valley yesterday. This photo, and the next one, are immature birds. Those afterwards are all mature. 




They are really quite beautiful. 

1 comment:

  1. That third to the last photo is stunning. I love that you compare the stripes on their heads to a football helmet. That's classic you.

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