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The white-throated sparrow is a member of the order Passeriformes, family Emberizidae, and its scientific name is Zonotrichia alicollis (Gmelin, F. J.). White-throated sparrows are 16-18 cm long and weigh between 22-32 g (Falls, J. B.). The average wingspan of this bird is 22.86 cm (Galanti, Andrea). The white-throated sparrow has yellow spots found between the bill and eyes, a white throat with black surrounding it, a white belly, a brown back with dark streaks, brown wings, a dark bill, and pink legs. An important identifying characteristic of this bird is its dark bill color (USGS). When looking at a white-throated sparrow, it may be hard to tell the difference between the males and the females due to the fact that they only have a few differences (Galanti, Andrea). One way that you can tell the difference between a male or female white-throated sparrow is that males have brighter heads and fewer streaks (Falls, J. B.).

The white-throated sparrow has two different color morphs: tan and white. The white color morph is usually more aggressive (American Bird Conservancy). White morph males go into neighboring territories of other males if they leave their partners unguarded, and attempt to mate with the unguarded females. Overall, these white morph males exhibit a lower degree of parental care of their young but may have more offspring because of their mating behavior . White morph females are more likely to allow copulation with an invading male which sometimes causes extra offspring. The more aggressive behavior in the white morph white-throated sparrows vs. the decline in male parental nurturing of the young creates an evolutionary  equilibrium for this species that is sensitive to environmental factors and conditions (Tuttle, Elaina M.).

The white-throated sparrow lives in shrubs or in open areas of forests (Falls, J. B.), and their habit preferences have been studied. Observations of clear-cut and mature forests showed that males in clear-cut areas spaced out twice as far from each other as the males in mature forests. Further, males in clear-cut forests were most likely to move to a mature forest the following year. The relative vegetation density of a site, then, determines the density of white-throated sparrows and it seems that individual white-throated sparrows only use a small range of their available habitat (Rousseau, Patrick).

White-throated sparrows breed in coniferous and mixed forests (Falls, J. B.). These birds freely breed with the opposite color morph, and breeding partners often stay together for a summer but then change breeding partners the following year (American Bird Conservancy). Females flutter their wings to attract the males. If males are able to successfully mate, then they will most likely return to the same territory the following year (Canisius Ambassadors for Conservation). White-throated sparrows can begin breeding after their first year. They lay between 3-6 eggs (Galanti, Andrea). The eggs are green with brown spots.

Nests are cup shaped and are made out of grass, rootlets, and moss. White-throated sparrows can build nests in forest undergrowth (Boreal Songbird Initiative). The females look over the eggs for 11-14 days. Nestlings are blind, immobile, and helpless. The male and female white-throated sparrow care for the nestlings for 8-9 days  (Canisius Ambassador for Conservation). Twinning if very rare in birds even though birds have the same chance of having twin offspring than any other vertebrate. There have only been 14 species of birds that have been documented having twin embryos, and the white-throated sparrow is one of them. The eggs are much longer and wider than other eggs. For the white-throated sparrow, the twin offspring are different color morphs as well as different sex (Betuel, Adam M.).

White-throated sparrows make a sharp “pink” sound. White-throated sparrows that are flocking have a huskier sound. Their song is 1- 2 notes long followed by 3- 4 notes long. A common phrase used to describe their call is “pure sweet Canada Canada Canada” (National Geographic). White colored morph white-throated sparrows are the ones that sing, this can cause the white morph males to becomes more aggressive. In reaction to the white morph males becoming more aggressive, the females will leave. Their communication biology is one of the reasons white-throated sparrows mate with the opposite color morph (Canisius Ambassadors for Conservation).

The location in which the white-throated sparrow is living will determine how many notes are  in their call. In the Rocky Mountains, they use triplet notes. In Canada, British Columbia, and Prince George, they use doublet notes. In Central Alberta and other parts of Canada, they use a higher frequency of call patterns. These different calls lead to mating segregation of the different geographic populations of white-throated sparrows (Ramsay, Scott).

The white-throated sparrow eats seeds and invertebrates (including flies, caterpillars, spiders, millipedes, and snails). Their winter diet consist of weed and grass seeds and berries. Young birds eat mostly insects. The white-throated sparrow hunts and feeds near dense thickets (Kaufman, Kenn). Individual white-throated sparrows, who showed dominance, fed at sites near cover even though these locations usually had food depletion. The cover acting as protection from predators was a prime consideration. When food was placed away from cover, white-throated sparrows depleted an area under cover before going into the open where the food was located (Schneider, Kathryn J.)

White throated sparrows migrate in both the spring and fall. During spring migration, the birds go north during mid-April to mid-May. During the fall, the birds head to warmer weathered areas from September through mid-November. Their spring migration is so short due to the fact that white-throated sparrows are territorial so they want to find a good area that will provide good resources, such as food (Occurrence Maps). White-throated sparrows are increasing in numbers in California. It is thought that this California population is the result of a group of white-throated sparrows being separated from its main flock during its seasonal migration (Wythe, Margaret W.).

There are 140 million white-throated sparrows in North America. In spite of significant population declines they are still a very abundant species (The Cornell Lab of Ornithology). Factors causing their population declines include increases in predators including raccoons, least weasels, cooper’s hawks, domestic cats, great horned owls, and American crows (Galanti, Andrea). These predators not only kill white-throated sparrows, but often tear down their nests which is why it usually takes white-throated sparrows two tries to build a successful nest (The Cornell Lab of Ornithology).

General:

Falls, J B, and B. J. Kopachena. “White-throated Sparrow.” The Cornell Lab of Ornithology, 2010, https://birdsna.org/Species-Account/bna/species/whtspa/introduction.

Galanti, Andrea. “White-throated Sparrow.” Animal Diversity Web, 19 Sept. 2016, http://animaldiversity.org/accounts/Zonotrichia_albicollis/

Gmelin, F. J. “Zonotrichia Albicollis.” ITIS, 19 Sept. 2016, http://www.itis.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt?search_topic=TSN&search_value=179462

Kaufman, Kenn. “White-throated Sparrow.” Audubon, 19 Sept. 2016, http://www.audubon.org/field-guide/bird/white-throated-sparrow52

“Occurrence Maps.” eBird, 19 Sept. 2016, http://ebird.org/content/ebird/occurrence/white-throated-sparrow/

“White-throated Sparrow.” American Bird Conservancy, 19 Sept. 2016, https://abcbirds.org/bird/white-throated-sparrow/

“White-throated Sparrow.” Boreal Songbird Initiative, 19 Sept. 2016, http://www.borealbirds.org/bird/white-throated-sparrow

“White-throated Sparrow.” Canisius Ambassadors for Conservation, 19 Sept. 2016, http://www.conservenature.org/learn_about_wildlife/birds_of_wny/white_throated_sparrow.htm

“White-throated Sparrow.” The Cornell Lab of Ornithology, 19 Sept. 2016, https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/White-throated_Sparrow/lifehistory

“White-throated Sparrow.” National Geographic, 19 Sept. 2016, http://animals.nationalgeographic.com/animals/birding/white-throated-sparrow/

“White-throated Sparrow Zonotrichia Albicollis.” USGS, 19 Sept. 2016, http://www.mbr-pwrc.usgs.gov/id/framlst/i5580id.html

Image:

Smithsonian National Zoological Park Conservation Biology Institute. Google. 2016. Web. 19 Sept. 2016, https://nationalzoo.si.edu/scbi/migratorybirds/featured_photo/bird.cfm?pix=White-throated_Sparrow (no known copyright restrictions) Douglas Racine

Scientific:

Betuel, Adam M., Elaina M. Tuttle, and Rusty A. Gonser. “Genetic Verification of Dizygotic Twin Embryos in the White-throated Sparrow (Zonotrichia Albicollis).” Wilson Journal of Ornithology, vol. 127, no. 3, 2015, pp. 498-502. Academic Search Complete. http://sk8es4mc2l.search.serialssolutions.com/?url_ver=Z39.88-2004&url_ctx_fmt=info:ofi/fmt:kev:mtx:ctx&rft_val_fmt=info:ofi/fmt:kev:mtx:journal&rft.atitle=Genetic%20Verification%20of%20Dizygotic%20Twin%20Embryos%20in%20the%20White-throated%20Sparrow%20%28Zonotrichia%20albicollis%29&rft.aufirst=Adam%20M%2E&rft.aulast=Betuel&rft.date=2015&rft.eissn=1938-5447&rft.epage=502&rft.genre=article&rft.issn=1559-4491&rft.issue=3&rft.jtitle=Wilson%20Journal%20of%20Ornithology&rft.pages=498-502&rft.spage=498&rft.volume=127&rfr_id=info:sid/www.isinet.com:WoK:BIOABS&rft.au=Tuttle%2C%20Elaina%20M%2E&rft.au=Gonser%2C%20Rusty%20A%2E

Cristol, Daniel Aaron, Karen Michelle Johnson, Kendell Daly Jenkins, and Dana Michelle Hawley. “Timing of Feather Molt Related to Date of Spring Migration in Male White-Throated Sparrows.” Journal of Experimental Zoology, vol. 321, no. 10, pp. 586-594. Environmental Sciences and Pollution Management, doi: http://dx.doi.org.ezaccess.libraries.psu.edu/10.1002/jez.1899.

Huynh, Lynn Y., Donna L. Maney, and James W. Thomas. “Contrasting Population Genetic Patterns Within the White-throated Sparrow Genome (Zonotrichia Albicollis).” BioMed Cenral, 28 Oct. 2010, doi: 10.1186/1471-2156-11-96.

Odum, Eugene P., and Jesse D. Perkinson Jr. “Relation of Lipid Metabolism to Mirgation in Birds in Seasonal Variation in Body Lipids of the Migratory White-Throated Sparrow.” Physiological Zoology, vol. 24, no. 3, 1951, pp. 216-230. The University of Chicago Press Journals. http://www.jstor.org/stable/30152115.

Olmstead, Melissa. “Nesting Ecology of White-throated Sparrows (Zonotrichia Albicollis): The Effects of Variation in Clutch-Initiation Date and the Application of Prescribed Fire on Nesting Success.” In Masters Abstracts International, vol. 53, no. 3, 2013, pp. 147. Environmental Sciences and Pollution Management. http://ezaccess.libraries.psu.edu/login?url=http://search.proquest.com/docview/1694975492?accountid=13158

Ramsay, Scott, and Ken Otter. “Geographic Variation in White-throated Sparrow Song May Arise Through Cultural Drift.” Journal of Ornithology, vol. 156, no. 3, 2015, pp 763. Wildlife & Ecology Studies Worldwide, doi: 10.1007/s10336-015-1183-8.

Rousseau, Patrick, Andre Desrochers, and Adam S. Hadley. “Habitat Selection and Fidelity by White-throated Sparrows (Zonotrichia Albicollis): Generalist Species, Specialist Individuals.” Canadian Journal of Zoology, vol. 90, no. 5, 2012, pp. 595-601. Environmental Sciences and Pollution Management, doi: http://dx.doi.org.ezaccess.libraries.psu.edu/10.1139/z2012-025.

Schneider, Kathryn J. “Dominance, Predation, and Optimal Foraging in White-throated Sparrow Flocks.” Ecology: a publication of the ecological society of America, Vol. 65, no. 6, 1984, pp. 1820-1827. Ecological Society of America, doi: 10.2307/1937778.

Tuttle, Elaina M. “Alternative Reproductive Strategies in the White-throated Sparrow: Behavioral and Genetic Evidence.” Oxford Journals, vol. 14, no. 3, 2003, pp. 425-432. Behavioral Ecology, doi: 10.1093/beheco/14.3.425.

Wythe, Margaret W. “The White-throated Sparrow in Western North America.” The Condor, vol. 40, no. 3, 1938, pp. 110-117. JSTOR, doi: 10.2307/1363825.