Nelson's Sparrow

 

October 8th

          Today was “déjà vu all over again” but with a happy ending.  Last Saturday, Mike and I got up really early and left the house at 6:00am to chase a Nelson’s Sparrow at Battelle Darby Creek Metro Park which is west of Columbus.  We arrived at 8:30am and spent 1½ hours searching for the sparrow with no success.  While driving back home, we received an alert that the Nelson’s Sparrow had been sighted 40 minutes after we left.  We were definitely frustrated and disappointed.

         At least two Nelson’s Sparrows continued to be seen at the same location all week but the first time we were able to return was today.  Once again, we left early and arrived at the park about 9:00am.  We walked to the exact same location where we stood one week ago, but this time I immediately saw movement in the reeds and spotted the bright orange face of the Nelson’s Sparrow. 

         We both got great binocular looks at the bird, but Mike was unable to get a photo.  Nelson’s Sparrows have bold yellow-orange faces, gray cheeks, and an orange band across a finely streaked breast.  They are notoriously skulky sparrows spending most of their time on or near the ground in dense marshy vegetation.

         They breed mainly in marshes in the northern Great Plains and along the northern Atlantic Coast.  In winter they occur in the saltmarshes of the southeastern United States.

(1 new species, total for the year 295)

Nelson’s Sparrow (scarce)


                                       Nelson's Sparrow (not our photo)

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