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Monday, September 29, 2008

Lincoln's Sparrow migrant

Recently we had this Lincoln's Sparrow migrant stop by our yard. This species breeds in Canada's Boreal Forest, not near us in southern NH. We make a "sparrow feeder" by sprinkling some millet on the ground near a shrubby woodland edge, just the type of place sparrows like. That's where we found this bird. What a lovely sparrow, with its creamy breast with a pale, buffy cinnamon wash across the breast under the fine breast streaks. It has a thin, whitish eye-ring. Note the central breast dot, which might make you think it's a Song Sparrow.

Here's a Song Sparrow for comparison. The breast dot is bigger and the breast streaks are thicker. Sparrow ID is subtle, you must look closely at face and breast patterns. But we have fun searching through those "LBJ's (little brown jobs) to find some treasures, such as our visiting Lincoln's Sparrow.

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