Black-throated Sparrow

Found throughout the southwestern United States and Mexico in arid upland habitats, Black-throated Sparrow breeds as far north as Washington State. Although often quite common, these conspicuous birds are little known. They mainly feed on seeds throughout the year, especially in winter, but during the breeding season, they often glean on insects from the leaves and stems of shrubs. Some populations nesting at northern latitudes migrates long distances, while those breeding farther south migrate shorter distances.

About Black-throated Sparrows

Black-throated Sparrow territories tend to be large during courtship and nest-building, shrinking to a smaller area around the nest while parents are incubating and caring for young. The male sings from high perches, while the female builds the nest low in desert shrubs or cactus. Monsoon rains in mid-June through July can stimulate renewed nesting
activity, prolonging the breeding season and often allowing a second brood.

Despite their endless points of interest, most of the information available about them is purely anecdotal. They are as common as they are secretive, with every detail that has been gleaned from them offering tremendous amounts of insight. Today, we will be giving these birds some much-needed attention. We will be going over:

● Black-throated Sparrow Photos, Color Pattern, Song
● Black-throated Sparrow Size, Eating Behavior, Habitat
● Black-throated Sparrow Range and Migration, Nesting

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Black-throated Sparrow Color Pattern

Adult Black-throated Sparrows have grayish-brown upperparts with white underparts. Their names derive themselves from a prominent throat patch that is black in color and triangular in shape. This patch has white lines along the throat and chin. Their faces have slight stripes of white. Their tail is blackish with its outermost edges and ends marked with a vividly contrasting white. Adults of both sexes look similar to each other, with their plumages being completely identical throughout the year.

Juveniles resemble adults, with their faces bearing the same white marks but their throats lacking the prominent black marks. Their chin, throat, and upper breast are white with dusky streaks and spots across the breast. Their upper parts are also have faint streaks. As they grow older, a more extensive black patch begins to appear on the chin, throat, and upper breast.

Description and Identification

Black-throated Sparrows are easily identifiable because of their distinctive and boldly marked faces. However, these patterns make it easy for them to camouflage with their surroundings. Their songs are often much quieter than other Sparrows, but it is one of the easiest ways to locate them. Keep your ear out for a gentle and tinkling sound that seems to rise up from around ground level before trying to trace the song back to its point of origin. During the breeding seasons, males sing from exposed perches upon shrub tops and are significantly easier to spot.

Black-throated Sparrow Song

Black-throated Sparrows have some of the most complex songs among all Sparrows. It’s a song that has a gushing and twinkling quality, before degenerating into a metallic clinking. It has a pleasant, but distinctive aural quality. Songs are generally in the context of courtship, pair maintenance, and territorial defense. The song itself is divided into two parts, an introduction with clear notes followed by a buzz, and repetitive sections of trills. The songs of some parts of their range sound like “chee whee, whit, wherrrr, cha, cha, cha, or chee cha cherrrrrr chee”. Some naturalists have also mentioned a croak-like, complex buzz and buzz-trill that is characteristic of their songs.

Song patterns vary greatly among individuals. They have almost 10 different types of songs, with only 4 songs having similarities among a group of 22 birds. These songs are most likely learned rather than inherited since each bird is an output of its unique environmental stimuli. Females don’t sing, but once in awhile they give out low chip notes when they are carrying food. Both sexes also give out a contact call note to each other while foraging. When a member of the pair leaves or approaches the nest, they sing the call notes. These calls are also heard during hostile encounters between the birds and their opponents over territorial disputes.

Black-throated Sparrow Size

Black-throated Sparrows are medium-size Sparrows around 4.7–5.5 inches in length. They have large, round heads, and conical bills that aid them in eating seeds. They are very light, weighing only about 0.4–0.5 ounces. Their wingspan is also rather small, extending only till 7.7 inches when stretched completely. Although both sexes are similar in size, males tend to be slightly larger and heavier than females. Their tail is also not too small but not too long. These proportions make these birds larger than Blue-gray Gnatcatchers and smaller than Horned Larks.

Black-throated Sparrow Behavior

These Sparrows hop while moving within foliage or on the ground. They frequently hop while foraging and while seeking food and nest material. Their flight is direct and consists of rapid wing beats, with short and deliberate flights from the ground to the shrubs or small trees. They rarely ever fly higher than the level of small trees and generally remain at the mid-levels of the foliage. Like other Sparrows, they can’t swim.

Males are highly territorial during the breeding seasons, frequently engaging in chase flights to drive intruding males away from their territories. Both males and females are active in chasing away intruders, with males defending the overall area of the territory while females defend the immediate vicinity of the nest. Throughout the chases, defense vocalizations are common and the resident and intruding bird may flutter around each other in flight. After these encounters, males and females retreat back into their territories if they were successful in defending them. In the event that they were chased out, they begin to scout for new territories. After the breeding seasons, they are more tolerant of each other and form small foraging flocks.

Pairs are typically monogamous, with few instances of polygyny reported. However, these birds may covertly mate with neighboring birds in rare instances. Pairs accompany each in all activities during territory establishment, but there is no information on the duration of their pair bond or the details of their courtship behavior. Resident males also guard their mates during incubation, brooding, or feeding of the young.

Black-throated Sparrow Diet

These birds mainly feed on seeds and insects. In general, they feed on more seeds in winter than during the summer. Their vegetarian diet also includes fresh green shoots, other green vegetation, and ripe berries and fruits when available. They are primarily ground foragers, foraging near or under shrubs and cacti. They also glean insects from leaves and twigs in shrubs. Their insect prey includes butterflies, moth larvae, mantids, robber flies, dragonflies, and walking sticks. Curiously, they can go without water during some parts of the year. During the drier times, they hydrate themselves from the liquid that they consume from insects and green plants. Nestlings are generally mainly fed insects to ensure healthy growth.

Black-throated Sparrow Habitat

These Sparrows are common in semi-open areas with evenly spaced shrubs and trees, all ranging around 3–10 feet tall. They live in a variety of dry habitats, including canyons, desert washes, and desert scrub with species of creosote, ocotillo, cholla, acacia, sagebrush, mesquite, and rabbitbrush. Grasslands with scattered cactus also host many populations of these Sparrows. Their elevational range can go from sea level to as high as 7,000 feet in pinyon-juniper forests.

Range and Migration

Black-throated Sparrows are either resident birds or short-distance migrants depending on their range. Birds that reside in the northernmost regions of their range are along California, Arizona, Nevada, and Utah. There are small populations also across New Mexico. These birds typically travel short distances towards Baja California Peninsula or the northernmost regions of Mexico. Populations that reside throughout the northern, coastal, and central regions of Mexico are permanent residents of their habitats and do not migrate.

Black-throated Sparrow Lifecycle

Females generally have a single brood in a season, but some regions of their range may raise up to 2 broods in a year. Each brood has a clutch size of 2–5 whitish to very pale blue eggs, with presumably only the female incubating the eggs for 11–13 days. It is unknown whether males play an active part in incubation or not, as most details about incubation are not well-known. The eggs then hatch, and the chicks emerge helpless, blind, and naked except for sparse tufts of down feathers. The nestlings are most likely fed by both parents for at least 2 weeks, although the exact age at which the young birds may leave the nest is not known. The age at which they become capable of flight is also not well-known.

Nesting

Nest sites are presumably selected by the females, generally in shrubs about 1 foot above the ground. Females often place the nest on the north or east side of the shrub to maximize morning sun and afternoon shade, making use of the foliage provided by the shrub to optimize exposure to lights. The plants that they frequently nest in include cholla,
brittlebush, boxthorn, acacia, creosote, mesquite, and other desert shrub and cacti species. The nest-building is done entirely by the females, with the outer cup woven out of grasses, plant stems, and rootlets. The interiors are further lined with finer grasses and animal hair.

Anatomy of a Black-throated Sparrow

Black-throated Sparrows are medium-sized Sparrows around 4.7–5.5 inches in length. They have large, round heads, and conical bills that aid them in eating seeds. They are very light, weighing only about 0.4–0.5 ounces. Their wingspan is also rather small, extending only till 7.7 inches when stretched completely. Their tail is also not too small but not too long. These proportions make these birds larger than Blue-gray Gnatcatchers and smaller than Horned Larks.

Final Thoughts

Like many other Sparrow species, their numbers have significantly declined since the late 1960s. While traditionally their main threat has been due to droughts and parasitism by Brown-headed Cowbirds, modern factors include habitat loss due to urbanization and policies passed to suppress forest fires. These conditions lead to many birds forgoing breeding, reducing the total number of Sparrows passed in a year. Growing numbers of Brown-headed Cowbirds have also reduced the likelihood of the young Sparrows surviving, as they generally hatch later and are pushed away by the cowbird nestlings. Since they do not breed in suburban or urban places, areas available to them for breeding have greatly dwindled.

These Sparrows are the perfect example of how seemingly similar birds always have something new to offer. They are elusive and secretive, preferring to remain by themselves and away from any potential disturbances. However, they sometimes visit feeders that have seeds if they are in the vicinity. If you live around their range and you want to catch a
glimpse of their curiously marked faces, set up a feeder with some seeds of black oil sunflower. While they might avoid it if it is too crowded, on quiet days keep your eyes open from afar, and may you will get to meet these birds before you realize that they are gone!

Ornithology

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Bird Watching Binoculars for IdentifyingBlack-throated Sparrows

The most common types of bird watching binoculars for viewing Black-throated Sparrows are 8×21 binoculars and 10×42 binoculars. Bird Watching Academy & Camp sells really nice 8×21 binoculars and 10×42 binoculars. You can view and purchase them here.

Black-throated Sparrow Stickers

Stickers are a great way for you to display your love for bird watching and the Black-throated Sparrow. We sell a monthly subscription sticker pack. The sticker packs have 12 bird stickers. These sticker packs will help your kids learn new birds every month.

Bird Feeders ForBlack-throated Sparrows

There are many types of bird feeders. Bird feeders are a great addition to your backyard. Bird feeders will increase the chances of attracting birds drastically. Both kids and adults will have a great time watching birds eat at these bird feeders. There are a wide variety of bird feeders on the market and it is important to find the best fit for you and your backyard.

Bird HousesForBlack-throated Sparrows

There are many types of bird houses. Building a bird house is always fun but can be frustrating. Getting a bird house for kids to watch birds grow is always fun. If you spend a little extra money on bird houses, it will be well worth every penny and they’ll look great.