Dark Eyed Junco
[Junco hyemalis hyemalis]
I was so excited this morning to see a little slate-colored Dark Eyed Junco hopping by my fence! A sure sign winter is here, Dark Eyed Juncos are common throughout the Arctic and Canada in the summer, and migrate to much of North America during the winter.
Mark Catesby originally described these birds as snow-birds, and their scientific name "hyemalis" means "of the winter." There is no specific collective noun for them, but because they're snowbirds, let's call them a Flurry of Junco's!
At about 6 inches with a wingspan of 9 inches, these little specimens of the emberizidae are related to buntings and new world sparrows and look and act a lot like them from a distance. As there are many subspecies of Dark Eyed Junco's, with some confusing variation in plumage, you can spot the slate-colored ones by their overall gray coloring, and all Dark Eyed Junco's by their white beaks, white bellies, and white outer tail feathers, unmistakable when in flight.
House Sparrow
[Passer domesticus]
The most widely distributed wild bird, House Sparrows are common throughout Europe and Asia, and, through accidental or intentional introduction, it is also found in Australia, Africa, and the Americas.
Not related to other North American sparrows, it is still one of the most common birds in North America... which is why these guys are sometimes easy to overlook. A group of them is called a Blight of House Sparrows... sadly, because they are so common, they're seen as a pest.
Slightly stocky, with a black mask and "bib" on the throat, white cheeks, reddish-brown necks, gray heads and underbellies, and brown wings with black and white streaks. Females and Juveniles are duller in plumage, and the girls lack the black mask and bib. They are about 6 inches with a wingspan of about 9 inches.
Black-Faced Grassquit
[Tiaris bicolor]
Common throughout the Carribean and along the coasts of Columbia and Venezuela. At first I thought these guys were House Sparrows, that's how common they were. Only when I noticed their finchlike bills and lack of telltale sparrow markings (wingbars and such) did I realize my mistake!
Their mannerisms are similar to Emberizidae, they hop around in low grass just like a House Sparrow, but are actually related to finches, and the family resemblance is certainly there!
They are about 4 inches long with a wingspan of about 6 to 7 inches. A drab olive-gray all over, the males have distinctly olive green backs and wings. They have dark, conical finchlike bills and dark eyes.
