Rufous-crowned Sparrow

Aimophila ruficeps Order: PASSERIFORMESFamily: Sparrows (Emberizidae)

General

Rufous-crowned Sparrow: Medium-sized sparrow with gray-brown upperparts streaked with red-brown; underparts are gray. Head has rufous crown, gray face, rufous eye-line, and thick, black moustache stripe. Wings are brown and lack bars. Tail is long and rounded. Sexes are similar. Juvenile has brown crown and streaks on breast and flanks.

Range and Habitat

Rufous-crowned Sparrow: Resident from California, southern Arizona, and southern New Mexico east to Texas and central Oklahoma. Inhabits open oak woodlands and dry uplands with grassy vegetation and bushes, often near rocky outcrops.

Listen to Call

Voice Text

"chip-chip", "deer"

Interesting Facts

The Rufous-crowned Sparrow was described in 1852 by John Cassin as Ammodramus ruficeps. It is also known as the Rock Sparrow because of its preference to live on rocky slopes.

The derivation of the current genus name, Aimophila, is from aimos, 'thicket' and phila, 'loving'. Its species name is a literal derivation of its common name, derived from the Latin words rufus 'rufous' and -ceps, from caput 'head'.

Male sparrows maintain and defend their territories throughout the year.

A group of sparrows has many collective nouns, including a "crew", "flutter", "meinie", "quarrel", and "ubiquity" of sparrows.

Author

Gary Owen Dick

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Bird Call Credits: The Macaulay Library of Natural Sounds at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. Martyn Stewart, http://www.naturesound.org, Redmond, Washington USA. The reuse or copying of bird calls in this database is strictly forbidden.

Rufous-crowned Sparrow

Rufous-crowned Sparrow: Medium sparrow with gray-brown upperparts streaked with red-brown; underparts are gray. Head has rufous crown, gray face, rufous eye-line, and thick, black moustache stripe. Wings are brown and lack bars. Tail is long and rounded. Legs and feet are pink-gray.

● Song: "chip-chip", "deer"

● Foraging & Feeding: Rufous-crowned Sparrow: Feeds on insects and seeds; forages by walking or hopping slowly on the ground or in low bushes, often feeds in pairs or small family groups.

● Breeding & nesting: Rufous-crowned Sparrow: Two to five white to pale blue eggs are laid in a neat cup nest made of grass, sticks, and bark pieces, lined with grass and mammal hair, and built on the ground or low in a tree or bush. Incubation ranges from 11 to 13 days and is carried out by the female.

● Similar species: Rufous-crowned Sparrow: Rufous-winged Sparrow has rufous shoulder patches, paler underparts, thinner moustache stripe, and different song.

Flight Pattern

Short flights., Alternates several rapid wing beats with wings pulled to sides.

Rufous-crowned Sparrow Breeding Male Body Illustration

● Range & Habitat: Rufous-crowned Sparrow: Resident from California, southern Arizona, and southern New Mexico east to Texas and central Oklahoma. Inhabits open oak woodlands and dry uplands with grassy vegetation and bushes, often near rocky outcrops.

^BreedingMonogamous, Solitary nester

^PopulationCommon locally

^MigrationNonmigratory

^Weight0.7 Ounces

Field Guide to Birds of North America