Sparrows, Buntings

White-throated Sparrow, Zonotrichia albicollis

Family Emberizidae (Sparrows, Buntings)

Size: 6.5"

Season: Year-round

Habitat: Undergrowth of mixed woodlands, thickets, gardens

The white-throated sparrow is a fairly large, rounded sparrow with a long tail and typical short, thick bill. It is brown with dark streaking above, has a gray rump, and is grayish below, washed with brown and lightly streaked. The head has a black crown that is bisected by a white medial strip, a white superciliary stripe with yellow near the lores, and a dark eye line. The white chin is sharply bordered by the gray breast below. White-throated sparrows forage on the ground in small flocks, often with other species, picking up insects and seeds. Their song is a clean, piercing, simple whistle that mimics the phrase old sam peabody, peabody, peabody. The adult is illustrated.