Boolie’s Blog

Another song sparrow, this one bugless, sitting in a tree along the Kiwa Trail at Ridgefield. It’s puffed its feathers out a bit, they aren’t normally this chubby.

A song sparrow and a red-winged blackbird were both collecting what I assume are the larval form of insects in this little patch of sticks and duckweed in front of a culvert. After determining that they didn’t mind my presence, I lay down on my stomach atop the culvert and photographed them.

Each bird had a different hunting technique, the blackbird cleared an area by using her beak, while the sparrow kicked at the duckweed with its feet.

Last week wasn’t all about blackbirds of course. While sitting still and watching that corner of the marsh, a number of other birds flitted through. This song sparrow would occasionally pop up and break out in song.

Song sparrows are found across the continental United States and parts of Canada and Mexico. However, there is considerable variation in the colors of the various races in different geographies. This singer is typical of those found here in the Northwest, with a lot of white in the chest but the rest of the body a mix of browns and grays.

Despite being an unremarkable Little Brown Bird in appearance, it’s their singing that makes me look forward to seeing and hearing these common little sparrows.