- Artemisiospiza belli
Amphispiza belli
Identification
5-6" (13-15 cm)
- Gray above
- White belly with small black mid-breast spot
- Back and sides striped
- Wings lighter with buff-colored feather edges that also form 2 wing bars
- Pronounced white eye ring
- Gray cheek
- White eyebrow
- Black "moustache" stripe
Immatures browner and have white throat and fine dark streaking on buff breast and belly.
Interior subspecies: birds are paler and less contrasty in the head and are richly streaked on the flanks. These will fall on opposite sides of the split, and differ by Sagebrush Sparrow having stronger back streaking (especially in early fall) and malar streak less marked than in canescens. Notice that the back stripes becomes less different during winter and that the malar streaks become more strongly marked in both ssp. due to wear, but these two characters combined should be able to separate those two future species.
Distribution
United States.
Breeds from cismontane California and southwestern Nevada south to Baja California. Winters in small flocks in low desert of southern California, south into Mexico.
Status
Subspecies clementeae is classed as threatened in California. It is found only on San Clemente Island, in the Channel Islands. Their numbers declined rapidly due to the introduction of feral goats and pigs, which destroyed the vegetation that the bird lives in. Since the removal of these animals, and the recovery of the vegetation, the number of sparrows appears to be recovering.
Taxonomy
Four subspecies are recognized:[1]
- A.b. belli - Coastal California, northwest Baja California, San Clemente Island
- A.b. cinerea - Desert scrub of west-central California
- A.b. clementeae - San Clemente Island, California (endangered)
- A.b. canescens - Interior south-central California and adjacent southern Nevada
Was formerly included in Sage Sparrow together with Sagebrush Sparrow.
Formerly placed in genus Amphispiza.
Habitat
Sagebrush, chaparral, dry foothills.
Behaviour
Rather a secretive species, disappearing quickly into cover when approached. However, during the spring breeding season, the males sing openly from a sagebrush perch. A key behavior is their tendency to run (rather than hop) between bushes with their tail held erect, similar to a wren. The tail is often flicked.
Breeding
The nest is a well hidden loose cup formed from pieces of sage-brush, lined with fur. Three or four bluey-white speckled eggs are laid.
Vocalisation
Song is a short pattern of finch-like jumbling notes, rising, then falling. Call is a soft tinkling.
References
- Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, B.L. Sullivan, C. L. Wood, and D. Roberson. 2013. The eBird/Clements checklist of birds of the world: Version 6.8., with updates to August 2013. Downloaded from http://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/
- Gill, F and D Donsker (Eds). 2011. IOC World Bird Names (version 2.10). Available at http://www.worldbirdnames.org/.
- Sibley, DA. 2000. The Sibley Guide to Birds. New York: Alfred A. Knopf. ISBN 978-0679451228
- Birdforum thread discussing the split of Sage Sparrow; includes link to a PDF with id features.
Recommended Citation
- BirdForum Opus contributors. (2024) Bell's Sparrow. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 28 April 2024 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/Bell%27s_Sparrow
External Links
GSearch checked for 2020 platform.
