• LJB
  • 23 Oct 2021 6:39 PM
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Which Sparrow?

  • Linda257
    It's a female house sparrow

    (Pardon the Scottish Accent)

  • Chris Gallagher

    In reply to Linda257:

    Really interesting. I'd have thought that the bib and cheek patch were diagnostic for tree sparrow, so what do I know?
  • Linda257

    In reply to Chris Gallagher:

    Every day is a school day Chris ;-)
    Tree sparrow have a sold chestnut brown crown and are smaller than the house sparrow.
    Some more facts here on tree sparrows
    www.rspb.org.uk/.../

    (Pardon the Scottish Accent)

  • Richard G B
    Female House Sparrow for me as well

    Richard B

  • rspbailey
    Tree Sparrows are also more skittish and 'busy' than the more common House Sparrow.

    A House Sparrow will tolerate humans much more whereas a Tree Sparrow won't.
  • Shezkah
    Some factors to consider.

    Yellow beak: Only house sparrows are generally known to have yellow beaks. Tree sparrows may have some yellow at the base of the bill but it is not usually self or as common, in my experience and according to my research.
    Cheek spot: Possibly a simple darkening which can occur on individuals of all species, although obviously known to be a trait of tree sparrows (usually larger).
    Wing bar: Usually not visible or very muted on female house sparrows, while they are wide on males. In tree sparrows (both sexes) there are usually 2 distinct bars and they are thin.
    Eyebrow streak: A distinguishing trait of female house sparrows and sometimes present in tree sparrows along with black eye patching.
    Chest/shin stripe to chest: Usually found on males of the house sparrow species, with tree sparrows having more of a beard/high bib most of the time.
    Legs: Flesh toned in house sparrows, usually darker in males. Almost universally yellow in tree sparrows.
    Cap: Although the cap is not very visible in this image, the paler buff area bordered by chestnut is much more indicative of a male house sparrow, with tree sparrows universally having little or no edging/variation in their caps.
    Collar/neck ring: Tree sparrows usually have some degree of white or pale collaring, almost always very visible.

    On balance, if I had to choose one of the two species P. domesticus or P. montanus (and not a potential foreign visitor) then I would say it is a juvenile male house sparrow (P. domesticus). That said, the two have been long suspected to hybridise so don't be surprised if that is the case! I would suggest seeing if you can capture their call, as hybrid birds often used mixed calls.

    Thanks for sharing your fun mystery and keeping the birds fed at this difficult time and all the best with your future spotting!
  • LJB
    Thank you everyone for your postings on identification and the information that you have shared.
    I am sorry that the photo was so poor. I have put up a wildlife camera this afternoon and maybe if the bird returns I may get a better image. However, even if it doesn't, I have found all this information on this posting really helpful.
  • Seaman
    Robbo, just a point on House/Tree Sparrows we two sites locally that holds both species and there has been some cross breeding, the lengths these birds will go to to confuse us birders

    Pete

    Birding is for everyone no matter how good or bad we are at it,enjoy it while you can