Scientific Name:   Spizella pusilla

Length:   4.7-5.9 in (12-15 cm)

Weight:   0.4-0.5 oz (11-15 g)

Wingspan:   7.9 in (20 cm)

Nest:   Building a nest a foot to as much as 10 feet off the ground, where they’re less accessible to snakes and other predators. The birds construct a framework of crisscrossed grass stems, then an open cup combining coarse and fine grasses lined with grass, rootlets, and hair.

Eggs:   3-5, rarely 2-6. Whitish to pale bluish white, with brownish spots often concentrated at larger end. Incubation is by female only, 10-12 days, rarely up to 17 days in cold spring. Nests parasitized by Brown-headed Cowbirds are often deserted.

Feeding Behavior:   They eat mainly grass seeds in winter, then switch to a blend of seeds and insect prey as the weather warms. These birds forage on the ground or in low vegetation, mainly eating insects and seeds. They may feed in small flocks outside the nesting season. When feeding on grass seeds, will fly up to perch on grass stems, bending them to ground.

Young:   Both parents feed young. Female may begin a 2nd nesting attempt, leaving male to finish rearing 1st brood. If disturbed, young may leave nest as early as 5 days after hatching, more typically 7-8 days. Remain in low vegetation near nest site for several days; able to fly at age 13-14 days.

Range:   Field Sparrows seek out open habitat with low perches, such as abandoned agricultural fields and pastures, fencerows, road and forest edges, and openings in wooded areas. Their breeding habitat is brushy, shrubby fields across eastern North America. These birds are permanent residents in the southern parts of their range. Northern birds migrate to the southern United States and Mexico.

Brief Description:   Adults have brown upperparts, a buffy breast, a white belly, two whitish wing bars and a dark-brown forked tail. They have a grey face, a rusty crown, a white eye ring and a pink bill. They have rusty markings behind the eye. There are grey and rufous color variants of the species. Males and females have a similar appearance with males being slightly larger than the females.