A very seriously endangered bird, the Grasshopper Sparrow is easy to overlook. Their insect-like songs are one of their most characteristic traits, possibly the source from which these birds inherited their names. 20th-century ornithologist Forbush described this species as “a queer, somber colored, big-headed, short-tailed, unobtrusive little bird [that] did not come by its name because of its fondness for grasshoppers, though it is never averse to making a meal of them, but because of its grasshopper-like attempt at the song, if it can be called a song.”
About Grasshopper Sparrows
These birds are found breeding in intermediate grassland habitats, preferring drier, sparser sites in lush tallgrass prairies and eastern grasslands, and thicker, brushier sites in shortgrass prairie and southwestern grasslands. In the East, they are found in the same habitats as the Savannah Sparrows, but they generally select more open sites with greater amounts of bare ground, mostly because it forages exclusively on the ground.
These birds appear to have a wide distribution across much of temperate North America, though it is locally distributed and even uncommon to rare throughout parts of its range due to long-term declines. These declines are mainly attributed to the loss and conversion of prairies and agricultural grasslands. Today, we will be shedding some light on the lives of these birds. The points we will be covering are:
● Grasshopper Sparrow Photos, Color Pattern, Song
● Grasshopper Sparrow Size, Eating Behavior, Habitat
● Grasshopper Sparrow Range and Migration, Nesting
GET KIDS BIRD WATCHING
Grasshopper Sparrow Color Pattern
These birds are plain, with an unstreaked creamy buff breast and a whitish lower breast. Their crown is blackish and narrowly streaked with a buff that divides the pale buffy-white crown stripes. They have orangish-yellow lores that sometimes extend over their eyes, along with a grayish nape with fine chestnut or reddish-brown streaks. Their back is also streaked with chestnut-rush and blackish, with the edge of their wing a bright yellow. Juveniles look similar but have a band of streaks across their breast.
Description and Identification
Grasshopper Sparrows have a reputation for being hard to find but learn their thin, buzzing song and you will hear it throughout the late spring and early summer emanating from overgrown pastures and hayfields with waist-high grasses. Once you hear the song, search for a small, round bird, often fluttering its wings, sitting a few inches below the top of a grass stalk. Grasshopper Sparrows are weak fliers and do not tend to move around much on territory, which gives you time to search for the mysterious singer. Also, look for them perched on barbed-wire fences adjacent to pastures; they avoid places with too much scrub or ground cover. When not singing, they can be nearly impossible to find, sticking to clumps of grass and running on the ground like mice.
Grasshopper Sparrow Song
Two songs are mainly used by males in mate attraction and territory defense. The third prominent male vocalization the trill is used to maintain pair bonds and announce their presence near the nest. Females also have their version of a trill that is used to announce their presence and attract mates. Males also have a low, fluttering, flight song that is
delivered 3–15 feet above the ground, similar to the song of Seaside Sparrows.
Male’s common primary songs are delivered from a fixed perch, with two short, staccato, high-pitched preliminary notes followed by a long, dry, insect-like stridulation “tsick, tsick, tsurrrrrrr, tip-tup-a-zeeeeeee” seemingly superficially similar to the songs of Savannah Sparrows. Male’s sustained songs are more musical, usually delivered from fixed perch but also in flight. It is a long, sustained series of short, buzzy notes that all vary slightly in pitch. It
has been described as a “series of see-sawing, squeaky notes”. Sustained songs are sometimes preceded by primary songs. The third and final song is confined to mated birds, with the short trill sung by male and female. Males deliver trill songs from perch or in the grass, a descending “ti-tu-ti-tu-ti-i-i-i-i-i”. The trills of females are similar but weaker, lacking the descending trill at the end, “ti-ti-i-i-i-i-i”. It is unknown if these songs change as the birds grow older. They are also not known to duet.
During the breeding seasons, the alarm call and contact note are a short double or triple note that can be best described as “tillic” or “tillillick”, or a piercing “tsee” or “tweet”. Low-intensity alarm tik calls are also common. Around the nest, a double chip is uttered by both males and females. The begging calls of the young are a similar but broken “chi-ip”, often being more high pitched than those of their parents. They also call frequently at dusk “tillillilick” on the
Florida prairies.
Grasshopper Sparrow Size
These tiny Sparrows measure about 3.9–5.5 inches in length and weigh around 0.49–1 ounces. They have a wingspan of approximately 6.9 inches. They are on the smaller side for a Sparrow, with a distinctive compact shape. Their head is large and flat-crowned, and they have a very conspicuous bill. Their tails are also very short. These measurements make them the smallest birds in their surrounding habitat, making them only slightly smaller than Savannah Sparrows.
Grasshopper Sparrow Behavior
Grasshopper Sparrows tend to walk or run rather than fly and spend much of their time seeking insects and seeds on bare ground near the cover of dense grasses. Their stealthy behavior and camouflaged plumage allow them to forage far from cover. Males in their territory sit atop a grass stalk, often quivering their wings while singing. When flushed they fly a short distance with rapid fluttery wingbeats before dropping into the grass to evade threats on foot.
Territorial males chase intruding males away from their territories, as with most Sparrows. However, actual fighting is probably rare and has not been observed much, except for a few cases at the territory borders. Once the intruders have been chased away, territorial males return to their prominent perches and sing their main songs while giving the wing-flutter display. Threat displays are frequently given during hostile interactions, generally comprising of a single wing fluttering from a fixed perch as they sing. If not singing, they will be perched with their head lower than their back as they stretch.
Pairs are seasonally monogamous, maintaining a pair bond throughout the nesting season but splitting up afterward. Courtship commences with females soliciting the pair bond, typically quivering their wings to the male near the nest. They don’t form flocks, though wintering birds can be fairly numerous on appropriate habitat as they forage together.
Grasshopper Sparrow Diet
Grasshopper Sparrows mostly feed on insects and seeds. In summer they feed mostly on insects, including many grasshoppers, beetles, caterpillars, ants, true bugs, and many others. They also eat considerable amounts of spiders, snails, centipedes, and earthworms. Seeds are also important in their diets, probably more so in winter, including those of weeds and grasses as well as waste grain. They greatly depend on exposed bare ground for effective foraging.
Grasshopper Sparrow Habitat
Grasshopper Sparrows are found occurring in grasslands, prairies, hayfields, and open pastures with little to no scrub cover and often with some bare ground. They breed in rather dry fields and prairies, especially those with fairly tall grass and weeds, along with a few scattered shrubs. Birds in the western part of the range can tolerate some brushy habitat but avoid areas that are too overgrown. Populations occurring in Florida are found nesting in prairies with scattered palmettos. Similar to their breeding grounds, these birds winter primarily in grass-dominated fields. During migration seasons, they are rather versatile and are found stopping by in many types of open fields.
Range and Migration
Their breeding habitat is in open fields and prairies across southern Canada, the United States, Mexico, and Central America, with a small, endangered population in the Andes of Colombia and (perhaps only formerly) Ecuador. The northern populations migrate to the southern United States, Mexico, Central America, and the Caribbean. Like many grassland birds, this bird’s numbers have declined across many parts of its range, including a 98% drop in New York.
Grasshopper Sparrow Lifecycle
These birds have an unusually high number of broods every breeding season, especially for other Sparrows. They have 2–4 broods in a year, with each brood having a clutch size of 4–5 creamy-white eggs that are spotted with reddish-brown and gray. On rare occasions, they may even have 6 eggs in a brood. Incubation is carried out only by the female for about 11–12 days, but both parents feed the nestlings once they hatch. The young ones typically leave the nest about 9 days after hatching, but the age at which they are first able to fly is unknown.
Nesting
These birds are found nesting on the ground, often at the base of a clump of grass within an extensive patch of tall grasses or sedges. The nest is usually domed with overhanging grasses and sedges, woven into the adjacent and adjoining vegetation. The structure also includes a side entrance. The interiors of the nest are lined with fine grasses and occasionally even various animal hair. The resulting proportions of the nest amount to about 5 inches across and 3 inches in height.
Anatomy of a Grasshopper Sparrow
These tiny Sparrows measure about 3.9–5.5 inches in length and weigh around 0.49–1 ounces. They have a wingspan of approximately 6.9 inches. They are on the smaller side for a Sparrow, with a distinctive compact shape. Their head is large and flat-crowned, and they have a very conspicuous bill. Their tails are also very short. These measurements make them the smallest birds in their surrounding habitat, making them only slightly smaller than Savannah Sparrows.
Final Thoughts
Grasshopper Sparrow populations declined by about 2.5% per year between 1966 and 2015, resulting in a cumulative decline of 72% over that period, according to the North American Breeding Bird Survey. It is a bird of significant priority in terms of conservation, as their numbers have suffered from a steep decline in recent years. If current rates of
decline continue, the species will lose another half of its population by 2065. The federally endangered Florida subspecies of Grasshopper Sparrow have declined rapidly in recent decades despite an intensive recovery plan. Grasshopper Sparrows are especially vulnerable to habitat loss through fragmentation and degradation, and the loss of native prairie habitat to intensive agriculture has reduced populations across its entire range. On the plus side, the species is very responsive to management including prescribed burns, light to moderate grazing, and delayed mowing of hayfields.
These birds are a few of the anomalies among Sparrows, ranging from their calls to their curious habits. Often, the survival of a particular species in their ecosystem is an indicator of the health of the ecosystem itself. Grasshopper Sparrows similarly reflect the health of the ecosystems that they thrive in, making their dwindling numbers a case of immense amounts of concern. These birds are not the most popular Sparrows in North America, with few people outside of birding circles knowing about them. Raising awareness about all the idiosyncrasies of this peculiar bird may not only hinder their accelerating decline but might also bring about better measures to control the rate at which our natural world is crumbling.
Ornithology
Bird Watching Academy & Camp Subscription Boxes
At the Bird Watching Academy & Camp we help kids, youth, and adults get excited and involved in bird watching. We have several monthly subscription boxes that you can subscribe to. Our monthly subscription boxes help kids, youth, and adults learn about birds, bird watching, and bird conservation.
Bird Watching Binoculars for Identifying Grasshopper Sparrows
The most common types of bird watching binoculars for viewing Grasshopper 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.
-
Birding Binoculars$49.99 - Kids Binoculars$13.99
Grasshopper Sparrow Stickers
Stickers are a great way for you to display your love for bird watching and the Grasshopper 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 For Grasshopper 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 HousesFor Grasshopper 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.
