Saltmarsh Sparrow

The Saltmarsh Sparrow is a small buff-orange bird with leaden gray and rusty spots. These birds are found only in the tidal salt marshes on the east coast of North America. This is apparently their only home. Having a particular habitat does take a toll on Saltmarsh Sparrows. As a result, they are one of the endangered species of the kingdom Animalia.

About Saltmarsh Sparrows


Saltmarsh Sparrows breed in the marshes of cordgrass, saltgrass, and needle rush that line the Atlantic coast of North America from Maine to Virginia. Saltmarsh Sparrows nest lower and have a very difficult relationship with the high tides. Even though their only habitat is the tidal salt marshes, the high tides destroy their low laying nests. Because of such a razor-thin error of margin these birds are heavily threatened by the rising sea levels globally.

These tiny birds with a very specific choice of habitat seem particularly interesting. Don’t they? Let’s learn a little more about these endangered birds.

● Saltmarsh Sparrow Photos, Color Pattern, Song
● Saltmarsh Sparrow Size, Eating behavior, Habitat
● Saltmarsh Sparrow Range and Migration, Nesting

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Saltmarsh Sparrow Color Pattern

Saltmarsh Sparrows are medium-sized colorful birds as they have a very beautiful and vivid color scheme. These birds have a grayish above with a contrasting paler underbelly. The wing coverts are rusty in color. What makes these birds unique are stark and vivid orange-buff face markings that frame the gray cheeks.

The breast and sides of these birds have a yellowish wash tone and consist of black markings while the back shows white stripes.

Description and Identification

Saltmarsh Sparrows are medium-sized birds that are pretty much similar to the Song Sparrows but have shorter tails. These birds can be identified easily as they only dwell in the salt marshes of the Atlantic coast and have stark face markings. The other birds from the family of Passerellidae such as Botteri’s and Cassin’s Sparrows cannot at all be confused with the Saltmarsh Sparrows as they are very unique when it comes to appearance and habitat.

Saltmarsh Sparrows were clubbed together with another species of sparrows named, Nelson’s Sparrows and were commonly named as Sharp-tailed Sparrows until the year 1995. These two species were segregated later on the basis of anatomical, genetic, and song differences and the difference of the habitat as Nelson’s Sparrows have a smaller bill and are mostly found in the Canadian salt marshes.

Saltmarsh Sparrow Song

Only the male Saltmarsh Sparrows sing songs and the song is not used for the purpose of establishing territories as these birds are not very territorial. These songs have mainly been used as a means to attract female birds and thus the male birds only sing them when a female bird is nearby. These birds only sing during the breeding season.

The song of the male Saltmarsh Sparrows consists of a medley of quiet phrases, calls notes, and even imitations of birds from other species. The song typically lasts for a few seconds to even more than a minute sometimes. The birds may sing while perched in the salt marsh or while flying between the perches.

The call notes of these birds are all very short. The frequently heard calls of these birds sound something like “tsip”, “tic” or “tuc”.

Saltmarsh Sparrow Size

Saltmarsh Sparrows are medium-sized birds and their size nearly resembles regular Song Sparrows. These birds measure around 4.7-5.1 inches (12-13 cm) in length and weigh 0.6-0.8 ounces (17.1-24.1 g) with a wingspan of 6.5-7.7 inches (16.5-19.5 cm). These birds are relatively bigger than Common Yellowthroats but are slightly smaller than Song Sparrows.

Saltmarsh Sparrow Behavior

Saltmarsh Sparrows spend a lot of time foraging for food. The foraging usually happens during low and falling tides as more areas of the marshes are exposed for foraging during these times.

These birds may forage on the ground or climb the marsh vegetation. They pick up their prey from the surface of marsh plants, ground, and water and sometimes probe in the mud where there is an abundance of insects and arthropods.

These birds sometimes forage during nights under the moonlight and are very adaptable towards the unavailability of food. Saltmarsh Sparrows have adapted to put on weight quickly for surviving storms and high tides.

During spring, the major breeding season, the male birds roam around in large areas of the marshes seeking female partners for breeding. These male birds only sing their songs with quiet phrases only when they see a female bird. The receptive females solicit copulation but the males chase the unreceptive females and copulate anyway despite the resistance from the female’s side. These birds are promiscuous and they do not actually form pairs. The male birds are not territorial and thus they do not compete with other males or defend territories from each other. They also do not have any role in taking care of the eggs or the young ones.

Saltmarsh Sparrow Diet

Saltmarsh Sparrows eat adult and larval insects, amphipods, and spiders along with the occasional marsh vegetation. During the breeding season, these birds get on an exclusive animal diet consisting of insects and the occasional small fishes and mollusks.

The insect diet includes flies, butterflies, moths, aphids, grasshoppers, leafhoppers, crickets, weevils, ladybugs, tiger and ground beetles, rove beetles, and click beetles. After the breeding season, these birds also eat some of the marsh vegetation, seeds of smooth cod grass.

They mostly forage near the ground but being opportunistic by nature, these birds can also climb higher into the marsh vegetation if more insects and seeds are available there.

Saltmarsh Sparrow Habitat

Saltmarsh Sparrows are restricted to Salt marshes only throughout the year as they have a very particular habitat. These birds nest in higher elevations and drier portions as far possible from the high tides. Such places are called the super tidal areas.

Salt meadow cod grass, salt grass, and needle rushes are very crucial parts of nesting and breeding. However, some birds nest in the intertidal parts among the smooth cod grass. As these birds cannot really migrate even during winters, they have adapted to escape snowstorms. During these life-threatening snowstorms, Saltmarsh Sparrows take refuge in the Red cedar trees bordering the salt marshes. These trees also serve as overnight roosting grounds in non-breeding seasons.

Range and Migration

The range of the Saltmarsh Sparrows covers the Atlantic coast which is the eastern coast of the North American continent. The range is from Maine to Virginia. The migration doesn’t occur in these birds as they are bound to the salt marshes. However, they do move small distances during the winter inside the range. The winters are spent in similar habitats. In May and October, the grounded migrants rest on the artificial islands of the Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel at the mouth of Chesapeake Bay.

Saltmarsh Sparrow Lifecycle

The maximum observed lifespan for the male birds is 10 years and for the female is 6 years. However, in the wild, the average lifespan is almost 7-9 years. The male Saltmarsh Sparrows do not really take part in the nesting, incubation, and feeding as there are no actual pair formations. The female birds make a nest by themselves and lay a clutch of 3-6 eggs which are greenish in color with dark speckles. These eggs measure 0.7-0.8 inches (1.7-2.1 cm) in length and 0.5-0.6 inches (1.3-1.6 cm) across. The incubation period is for 11-12 days and the female alone does the incubation. The hatchlings are helpless when born and are fed by the female. The young leave the nest after only 9-10 days. The number of broods per season is two.

Nesting

The female selects the nesting site that is usually at a higher level and on the drier portion i.e. the super tidal areas. These areas have marsh grasses like salt meadow cod grass that form a platform on which the nests are made to guard the nest against the high tides.

Nests are usually less than 3 feet off the ground but occasionally they rest on the ground at the base of a clump of needle rush, marsh elder, or other shrubs. The female builds the nest on her own with the collected nesting material. The female bird makes a simple and bulky nest cup with marsh vegetation and reed supported by stems of marsh plants at the sides and the mats of salt meadow cod grasses at the base. Sometimes, the female also makes a dome on it and usually enters the nest through the tunnel under that cod grass mat. Nests are average 2.8 inches tall by 3.4
inches across, with the interior cup 2 inches across and 1.5 inches deep.


Anatomy of a Saltmarsh Sparrow

Saltmarsh Sparrows are medium-sized birds. In shape, these birds resemble the Song Sparrow. However, are a little smaller than them in size as the length of the tail is significantly shorter. The individual feathers at the end of the tail make it look spiky which is why when clubbed with the Nelson’s Sparrows. These birds were commonly referred to as, Sharp-tailed Sparrows. Saltmarsh Sparrows have a robust body and a moderately long conical bill.

Final Thoughts

Breeding success and the population maintenance of Saltmarsh Sparrows largely depend upon the timing of the high tides and storms as the nests get destroyed in such cases. Especially, during the spring season, it becomes even trickier as it is the time for the highest tides. The most successful nests are those that start right after the high tides of the full moon as the eggs have the chance to hatch before the next full moon which is 2 weeks from it.

Saltmarsh Sparrows live a life that has to maintain a delicate balance cycle with the high tide and thus the margin of errors is very thin. The success of breeding and maintaining a stable population is at stake. However, because of this delicate timing balance, there is a lot of unsuccessful breeding for these birds. They are heavily affected by the rising sea levels globally as a consequence of the melting of glaciers because of global warming and are endangered now.

These birds are also threatened because of habitat loss which is a byproduct of human development. Habitat degradation and invasive plants are two more factors that threaten the existence of Saltmarsh Sparrows.

Suggestions to help the Saltmarsh Sparrow survive sea-level rise fall into short-term solutions, such as restricting tidal flows to reduce the effects of the highest tides. The long-term solutions are protecting adjacent uplands for marshes to move into, reducing marsh erosion, and encouraging sediment flow to allow marshes to enlarge.

Ornithology

Bird Watching Academy & Camp Subscription Boxes

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Bird Watching Binoculars for Identifying Saltmarsh Sparrows

The most common types of bird watching binoculars for viewing Saltmarsh 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.

Saltmarsh Sparrow Stickers

Stickers are a great way for you to display your love for bird watching and the Saltmarsh 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 Saltmarsh 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 Houses For Saltmarsh 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.

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