For the beginning birder, sparrows are often hard to tell apart. In fact, even vetern birders use the phrase "little brown birds" or LBBs when faced with sparrows (or wrens or finches, etc) too distant to distinguish. But of course once you've studied sparrows for a few years, you'll begin to recognize their differences without too much trouble.

One way to begin is to organize sparrows into groups (as Tory Peterson did in his A Field Guide to the Birds), for instance, those with rusty "caps," those with streaked breasts, or those with clear breasts. There are still finer distinctions but you get the idea.

Among the streak-breasted sparrows, the Song Sparrow is more conspicuous than others because he and she bear a large, dark central spot on their breasts. (The Song Sparrow is a "monomorphic" species meaning the sexes are physically similar. See last week's post on the Purple Finch for an example of a "dimorphic" species, that is, birds dissimilar in appearance between the sexes).

Just to make things more interesting, the Song Sparrow isn't the only sparrow to bears a central spot. For instance, the American Tree Sparrow does as well. However, the Tree Sparrow falls into the "rusty-capped" and "clear-breasted" groups, so there's no worry about confusing him with the Song Sparrow.

Finally, another visual aid in determining whether the "little brown bird" in your yard is a Song Sparrow is this: Look for a thick, dark malar or moustache stripe. This stripe is not very pronounced in the image of this Song Sparrow taken from my upstairs window. Given his gentle markings overall, I suspect this bird maybe be a juvenile. To compare him (or her) against a more heavily marked Song Sparrow, check out the picture provided by another photographer and posted to my August 1, 2009 blog.

Next time you see a "little brown bird," check to see if it might be a Song Sparrow!

Till later . . . Keep birds in your heart!

Georgia Anne Butler