Length: 4.75 inches | Wingspan: 7.25 inches | Seasonality: Migrant / Summer |
ID Keys: Gray cheek surrounded by buffy-orange, buffy breast and sides with darker streaks, white belly, gray central crown stripe |
The Nelson's Sparrow and the
Saltmarsh Sparrow were only recently
split into two species, having once been both labeled the "Sharp-tailed
Sparrow". The Nelson's is unusual in several ways. Their
breeding distribution is oddly disjunct, with an interior population in the
Northern Plains of the U.S. and south-central Canada, and coastal populations on
southern Hudson Bay and in the New England area. Their breeding behavior
is also unusual, in that both sexes are extremely promiscuous and fail to form
pairs. Males will sing their mating song, but will breed with any female
that is amenable. Females raise the young alone, and will also mate with
multiple males.
2) Cornell's All About Birds - Nelson's Sparrow
3) American Bird Conservancy Watchlist Account - Nelson's Sparrow
Click on the map below for a higher-resolution view |
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South Dakota Status: Rare migrant in the eastern part of the state, and rare breeder in the northeast. |