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Bird Photos: Rarities: White-throated Sparrow at
Bayfront Park
Menlo Park, San Mateo County, CA
This White-throated Sparrow was found by Rich Ferrick
on 10/21/04. Bayfront Park is a capped landfill at the edge of
the San Francisco Bay in Menlo Park and is the same place that
Rich found a Lark
Bunting on 10/4/04. The White-throated Sparrow is more of
a Midwestern and Eastern species but a fair number winter each
year along the West Coast. There are two plumage forms, or morphs:
white-striped and tan-striped, referring to the color of the supercillium,
or "eyebrow".
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I was able to relocate this bird on 10/21/04.
It fed on the ground with White- and Golden-crowned sparrows.
At a distance, it was not as easy to pick out as the Lark
Bunting that was present for the previous few weeks. But
as one scans through a group of Zonotrichia sparrows, the
genus that this species and its feeding cohorts belong to,
the head pattern doesn't quite match the other species.
The dark line (malar stripe) intersecting
the sides of the white throat patch is a typical mark of
the tan-striped morph, as are the faint breast streaks.
A white-striped morph would have blacker crown streaks,
brighter yellow lores, and a more contrasting, white supercillium. |
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On White-throated Sparrows, there's a thin
dark edge to most of the white throat patch which accentuates
the contrast between it and the cheeks and upper breast.
This is best shown in the first image. Golden-crowned Sparrows
can show a white throat patch, but it is not nearly as contrasty.
Golden-crowned Sparrows can have some yellow in the lores
in their winter plumage, but they also have yellow in the
forecrown, which the White-throated Sparrow lacks. The eyeline
in winter-plumaged Golden-crowned Sparrows is faint, at
best.
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The well-defined, thin, lateral crown
stripes, in combination with the yellow lores, prominent
eyelines, as well as the contrasting white throat, sets
this species apart from its more common brethren, White-
and Golden-crowned sparrows.
To my eye, White-throated Sparrows also appear
slightly smaller and more round-bodied than these two species.
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All images on this page are copyrighted by Les Chibana.
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grab the pigeon on the left and send a note. |
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