Alternative name: White-faced Ground Sparrow
- Melozone biarcuata
Identification
15–17·5 cm (6-7 in)
Male Nominate
- Dark-grey bill
- Very open white-faced appearance
- Blackish forehead
- Olive-brown upperparts olive-brown
- Rufous crown to hindneck
- White underparts
Juveniles: browner upperparts, yellower underparts, and a duller indistinct head pattern.
Distribution
Central America: southern Mexico, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras and Nicaragua.
Taxonomy
Subspecies
Two subspecies are recognized[1]:
- M.b. hartwegi is found in southern Mexico
- M.b. biarcuata is found in Guatemala, El Salvador, and Honduras
The scientific name has in the past been written Melozone biarcuatum
Formerly considered conspecific with Cabanis's Ground Sparrow.
Habitat
They are found at the edges of tropical and deciduous montane and evergreen forests and secondary forests. Also coffee plantations. Usually in the undergrowth.
Behaviour
Breeding
The female constructs a cup nest from dead leaves and grass, which is lined with finer grass. The clutch consists of 2-3 white eggs, with reddish blotches. They are incubated by the female for 12-14 days. The male assists with feeding the chicks.
The nest is sometimes parasitised by the Bronzed Cowbird.
Diet
The search on or near the ground and in the leaf litter for arthropods and seeds.
Vocalisation
The male’s song is a whistled pst’t’t’t peer peer peer whee whee whee.
References
- Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, D. Roberson, T. A. Fredericks, B. L. Sullivan, and C. L. Wood. 2017. The eBird/Clements checklist of birds of the world: v2017, with updates to August 2017. Downloaded from http://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/
- Avibase
- Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive (retrieved February 2017)
- BF Member observations
- Wikipedia
Recommended Citation
- BirdForum Opus contributors. (2025) Prevost's Ground Sparrow. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 11 May 2025 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/Prevost%27s_Ground_Sparrow
