Sparrows are one group of birds that I tend to give up on identifying before actually trying. Flip open any bird guide (c’mon, you know you have several), and you will find a significant section dedicated to sparrows. Male sparrows in breeding plumage are probably the most distinct, but that leaves females, non-breeding males, and juveniles. That’s when identification gets tricky, especially if you are not well practiced with these little brown darlings. (Yes, I know about the customary nickname, “little brown jobs,” but I think these birds deserve better.)

I place myself squarely in the interested-and-eager-to-learn-but-woefully-short-on-experience category.  I’m about to dive in to a sparrow ID, based on  photographs and location. I may or may not wind up with the correct ID, but I plan to have fun along the way, and invite you to have a look with me.

The first photograph is an idyllic scene – two birds perched amongst the safety of pond-side vegetation, with easy access to a sip of water and a refreshing bath. I noticed these birds because they hopped about in the general area, but did not seem interested in leaving. To be completely honest, they were the only birds I was lucky enough to see in the limited time I had outdoors, so I paid more attention to them than I normally would. Normally, I would recognize these birds as sparrows, immediately decide it would be hard to identify them, and look elsewhere for more exciting birds, or birds I might recognize. I’m glad I found myself in a situation where I was forced to take a closer look at them. Sheer lack of other species and a gnawing need to be outside combined to help me discover a new level of interest in sparrows.

I’ve labeled the same photo with the field marks that I have used to identify these sparrows. Right or wrong, this is how I approached this newish challenge:

1. Start with my Birds of Texas ¹ field guide – it is the best reference I have for accurate range maps. I can at least narrow the list of possible species from any other guide that covers east, west, or all of North America. So, according to range, the candidates are (18):

• American Tree Sparrow
• Chipping Sparrow
• Clay-colored Sparrow
• Field Sparrow
• Vesper Sparrow
• Lark Sparrow
• Savannah Sparrow
• Grasshopper Sparrow
• Henslow’s Sparrow
• Le Conte’s Sparrow
• Nelson’s Sharp-tailed Sparrow
• Fox Sparrow
• Song Sparrow
• Lincoln’s Sparrow
• Swamp Sparrow
• White-throated Sparrow
• Harris’s Sparrow
• White-crowned Sparrow

2. Next, eliminate species from the list above for birds whose range does not fall in my area at this time of year, and you get (16):

• American Tree Sparrow
• Chipping Sparrow
• Clay-colored Sparrow
• Field Sparrow
• Vesper Sparrow
• Savannah Sparrow
• Henslow’s Sparrow
• Le Conte’s Sparrow
• Nelson’s Sharp-tailed Sparrow
• Fox Sparrow
• Song Sparrow
• Lincoln’s Sparrow
• Swamp Sparrow
• White-throated Sparrow
• Harris’s Sparrow
• White-crowned Sparrow

3. Eliminate from the list above, any species that does not have the two most distinguishing field marks (IMO): white eye rings and 2 white wing bars. This is where the use of multiple field guides comes in handy – the portrayal of the same species in different guides varies significantly in illustration, and varies somewhat by description. The result (2):

• Field Sparrow
• Vesper Sparrow

4. That narrowed it down quite a bit, but what a lot of work! Some field guides show illustrations of the birds as juveniles, non-breeding adults, and different color morphs. Some even show “fresh” plumage vs. “worn” plumage at different times of year. This extra information for a virtual newbie at sparrow ID is helpful, though just a wee bit daunting.

Not to throw a wrench in the works, but I was able to photograph a sparrow that was a bit closer, shortly after it bathed. Is it the same species? I thought so at the time, but now…looks a lot different:

…drying off after a bath…

Is it just me or does this seconds-later photo more closely resemble the birds in our ID photo? I say yes.

So my conclusion is that this sparrow is a Field Sparrow (Spizella pusilla). The overall color of the Field Sparrow is lighter than the Vesper Sparrow (Poocetes gramineus), and the Vesper Sparrow is streaked whereas the Field Sparrow is not.

There are numerous other factors that I could have considered instead, including other field marks, habitat, song, and size. I did consider some of the other field marks I have noted in the photo.

All of the flipping back and forth through the sparrow pages of multiple field guides has certainly left me better acquainted with the different sparrow species. That fact alone is worth the work of identifying a single sparrow. Bring on the next one!