Bird of the Week: Song Sparrow

Species: Song Sparrow, Melospiza melodia

Family: Passerellidae

Sign: Leo

Favorite hobby: Haunting open mics

Photo courtesy of Wikipedia user Rhododendrites

Dear reader,

Song sparrows possess perhaps the loveliest voices on campus, and arguably in most of the places that they reside. They reside in almost all of North America year-round during their breeding season, while during their non-breeding season they inhabit various areas. The sparrows live year-round in Oregon and are distinctive in the difficult-to-distinguish realm of sparrows for their brown-streaked light breast and brown cap. Song sparrows range in their coloration and features, though, with pale desert Southwest populations and darker, more heavily streaked Northwestern populations. On Alaska’s Aleutian Islands, song sparrows are even darker and enormous, weighing twice as much as others. Despite their variation by population in different areas, song sparrows have low genetic divergence. Their frequent immigration and emigration between populations keeps them genetically similar and local selective conditions keep the displayed physical differences in place. 

Song sparrows can be found in most habitats, though they prefer to build nests in hidden, secluded locations. Field researchers studying the same parcel of land over several seasons found that the sparrows continually used the same spots when a new sparrow would take over a territory. They eat many insects and other invertebrates throughout the summer, and eat fruits and seeds year-round. Song sparrows are certainly not picky eaters, which is perhaps a product of their expansive range.  

Of course, song sparrows are known best for their vocalizations. They begin with loud notes, well-spaced and individual, and end with a trill or buzz. In between notes, the sparrow may add other miscellaneous trills. Patterns of song are incredibly variable among populations and even among individual birds. Perhaps it's just the beauty of their song, but when I hear a song sparrow, it sounds like they are singing something novel and unreproducible, more than any other bird. They sound like they are composing as they sing. When a song sparrow’s voice rings out through the foliage, it is not recognizable for a particular consistent pattern, but for its tone, volume, and structural tendencies. Since it’s their breeding season, they have been quite a bit more vocally active recently. Most times, they are a prominent part of the morning and evening cacophony one might hear at Reed. Male song sparrows use their song to bring in mates and defend their territory. According to Cornell Lab’s “All About Birds” webpage, studies have shown that female sparrows are attracted partly by the ability of the male song sparrow to learn songs. Males that displayed songs matched to the adult sparrows they learned from were more desirable to female sparrows. Intellect matters, as it turns out!

Next time you hear a trilling song in the Canyon, consider how many intricate attentions and learned components it took to create such a beautiful song.