One of the pleasures of birding is when you suddenly realize that the bird you’re seeing isn’t what you thought it was but something surprising. American tree sparrows have that effect on me, and it happened again with my two most recent visits to the Mercer Meadows Pole Farm.
The other day, I spotted a bird above me and couldn’t quite make out what it was. Goldfinch? Sparrow? The light wasn’t great that morning, and after snapping a few photos I wandered off, figuring I’d fix the ID once I got home.
Although you can almost always see or hear song sparrows at the Pole Farm, and Savannah sparrows are around much of the year, American tree sparrows are not spotted nearly as often.
As you have probably already deduced, that mystery bird, when brought up on my laptop screen, turned out to be a tree sparrow. Instant joy, followed by an update to my eBird checklist. One of the photos tops this post.
This morning, as I walked up the central path toward the tree line, I didn’t realize I was heading into a sparrow parfait.
First and predictably came the song sparrows, singing in the morning sun.
Fifty or so yards farther, I encountered a trio of Savannah sparrows grazing on the trail and ducking off into the brush.
As I drew closer to the tree line, I looked ahead at another cluster of sparrows on the path. Up went my binoculars and, expecting more Savannahs, I was startled to realize they were American tree sparrows. A wave of pleasure washed over me. I didn’t have to wait for the recognition to come on screen.
One of the birds flew up onto the branches of a small, bare tree, and, thanks to the ample sunlight shining on it, I got a couple of nice shots full of feather detail.
I love the American tree sparrows for their bi-colored beaks and rufous caps, a sporty look that always makes me smile. 🦅
The Jersey Birder 