House sparrow
The house sparrow, also known as the English sparrow, is one of the most ubiquitous bird species globally, often seen in urban environments due to its close association with human habitats. These small birds typically measure six to seven inches in length and weigh around one ounce. Males are characterized by their distinctive gray crowns and black throats, while females have more subdued brown plumage. House sparrows build nests using a mix of natural and human-made materials, often found in man-made structures like roofs and bridges.
Feeding primarily on seeds, these adaptable birds have also incorporated various human foods into their diet, such as breadcrumbs and peanuts. House sparrows are social throughout most of the year but become territorial during the breeding season, which runs from February to August. Females handle most of the incubation duties, while males assist in feeding the chicks after they hatch. With an estimated global population exceeding one billion, house sparrows are resilient creatures that can live up to 13 years and are currently not considered a threatened species.
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House sparrow
The house sparrow, sometimes called the English sparrow, is one of the world's most common birds. Its numbers and wide range, as well as the fact that it is almost always found near people, make it a familiar sight. They eat a wide variety of natural and human foods and build their nests from assorted materials left behind by people.
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Passeriformes
Family: Passeridae
Genus: Passer
Species: Domesticus
The familiar house sparrow, with its brown, black, and white plumage, or feathering, grows to an adult length of six to seven inches (15 to 18 centimeters) and a weight of close to one ounce (28 grams). Their wingspans are around 10 inches (25 centimeters). Black, white, and dark brown bars mark their light brown backs and wings. Their breasts and stomachs are gray. Males have large white cheeks, black throats, and gray crowns, or tops of their heads. Females have brown or tan cheeks, brown crowns, and white throats.
These sparrows are not to be confused with the smaller tree sparrows, which are also very common and live in more rural settings. Tree sparrows have chocolate-brown plumage on the tops, or crowns, of their heads and backs, or napes, of their necks. The male house sparrows have gray crowns. The tree sparrows also have black and white cheeks and slightly different markings on their wings. Both male and female tree sparrows look alike, while minor differences exist between male and female house sparrows.
House sparrows, though very common and familiar to people, are still wild birds which may not always live near people, but in caves, cliffs, or bushes. They now make themselves very much at home in roofs, under eaves of buildings, under bridges, in barns, in holes in walls, on towers and buildings, in stacks of hay or straw, and various other man-made sites. Common nesting materials which the birds glean, or collect, from their human neighbors are bits of plastic, cloth, and paper, as well as the standard and natural grass, straw, and feathers which other birds use. Nests are usually rather messy and ball-shaped. If a man-made site is unavailable, the nests rest in a tree or bush, among ivy, among rocks, or on an earthen bank. Estimates of the world population of house sparrows are over one billion birds.
House sparrows naturally eat seeds, but they have adapted, or changed, their diet to include breadcrumbs, peanuts, grain on farms, and buds from fruit trees, as well as other tidbits and morsels which people leave behind.
When the February-to-August breeding season arrives, house sparrows become quite territorial of their nesting sites. During the rest of the year, they are quite social with their sparrow neighbors. Sparrows may even throw each other and other birds out of their nests at this time. The female is responsible for most of the incubation of the one to eight eggs, which are white with gray blotches. After the young hatch, nearly two weeks after being laid, the male helps the female feed their young. About two weeks later the chicks fledge, or fly from the nest for the first time. They develop until they are able to mate at one year of age. A male and female may have two to four, or even up to seven, broods, or batches, of young each year.
Hawks, falcons, owls, snakes, and domestic cats and dogs may prey upon house sparrows. House sparrows are hardy and tough little birds which may live up to 13 years. They are not a threatened species.
Bibliography
Imhoff, Brad. “House Sparrow Overview.” All About Birds, 2024, www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/House‗Sparrow/overview. Accessed 12 Apr. 2024.
Polan, Jason. “House Sparrow - Audubon Field Guide.” National Audubon Society, 2024, www.audubon.org/field-guide/bird/house-sparrow. Accessed 12 Apr. 2024.