White-Throated Sparrow (Zonotrichia albicollis)


Group	Sparrows
Code	ABPBXA4020
Order	Passeriformes
Family	Emberizidae
Author	(Gmelin, 1789)
Rank	G5 (definitions)
Occurrence	SM (definitions)
Scale	C (definitions)

County List:


Western UP	all
Eastern UP	all
Northern LP	Emmet, Gladwin, Clare, Alpena, Cheboygan, Charlevoix, Benzie, Bay, Crawford, Mecosta, Grand Traverse, Mason, Manistee, Leelanau, Lake, Kalkaska, Isabella, Antrim, Iosco, Alcona, Otsego, Presque Isle, Wexford, Oscoda, Ogemaw, Oceana, Newaygo, Montmorency, Missaukee, Midland, Osceola, Roscommon
Southern LP	Sanilac, Tuscola, Van Buren

Rule:

Forested or Mixed Forested/Nonforested Landscapes

      (Spruce/Fir (Regen or Sap))
      or (Hemlock (Regen or Sap))
      or (Jack Pine (Regen or Sap))
      or (Any Upland Mixed (Regen or Sap))
      or (Tamarack (Regen or Sap))
      or (Black Spruce (Regen or Sap))
      or (Any Lowland Mixed (Regen or Sap))
      or Upland Brush
      or Lowland Brush
      or Treed Bog

view decision rule term definitions

Habitat List:

Habitats	Regen	Sap	Pole	Sm Saw	Lg Saw	Uneven
Aspen	no	no	no	no	no	-
Paper Birch	no	no	no	no	no	-
Oak	no	no	no	no	no	no
Assorted Hardwoods	no	no	no	no	no	no
Northern Hardwoods	no	no	no	no	no	no
Spruce/Fir	YES	YES	no	no	no	no
Hemlock	YES	YES	no	no	no	no
Jack Pine	YES	YES	no	no	no	no
Red Pine	no	no	no	no	no	no
White Pine	no	no	no	no	no	no
Conifer Plantations	no	no	no	no	no	-
Mixed Upland Hardwoods	YES	YES	no	no	no	no
Mixed Northern Hardwoods	YES	YES	no	no	no	no
Mixed Upland Conifer	YES	YES	no	no	no	no
Mixed Pine	YES	YES	no	no	no	no
Swamp Hardwoods	no	no	no	no	no	no
Balsam Poplar & Swamp Aspen & Swamp Birch	no	no	no	no	no	no
Bottomland Hardwoods	no	no	no	no	no	no
Tamarack	YES	YES	no	no	no	no
Northern White Cedar	no	no	no	no	no	no
Black Spruce	YES	YES	no	no	no	no
Mixed Lowland Hardwoods	YES	YES	no	no	no	no
Mixed Lowland Conifer	YES	YES	no	no	no	no
Non-Forested	Upland Brush, Lowland Brush, Treed Bog
Special Features	none

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Literature:

Ewert, D. N. 1991. White-throated Sparrow. Pages 488-489 In: R. Brewer, G. A. McPeek, and R. J. Adams, Jr. (eds.) The atlas of breeding birds of Michigan. Michigan State University Press, East Lansing. 594 pp.

Habitat: Dense second-growth, especially in lowlands where conifers and alders are dominant, muskegs, and bogs with patches of spruce are favored summer haunts of this strikingly patterned sparrow. Less frequently, it is found in jack-pine plains or recently lumbered areas, especially if slash is left on the forest floor or saplings have invaded the cleared areas. Prior to settlement, White-throated Sparrows may have been restricted to natural openings: bogs, alder thickets, recently burned areas, areas of wind throw, and Great Lakes and inland lake shorelines. The cup nest is usually placed on or near the ground.

White-throated Sparrows are more generally distributed in the Upper Peninsula than in the Lower Peninsula, where they are more likely to be found in upland habitats. During migration they may be found almost anywhere, from lawns to mature forests. Those that winter in Michigan seek shrubby lowland areas or bird feeders.

White-throated Sparrows are edge species and have probably benefited from lumbering. Where slash remains, especially in the Upper Peninsula where conifers are prominent in early stages of succession, White-throated Sparrows may be abundant.

DeGraaf, R. M. and D. D. Rudis. 1986. New England wildlife: habitat, natural history, and distribution. GTR NE-108. Broomall, PA:USDA, Forest Service, Northeastern Forest Experiment Station. 491 pp.

Habitat: Breeding: Edges of northern deciduous and coniferous forests, brushy clearings, open stunted tree growth of higher elevations, border of bogs, cut-over areas and open second-growth woodlands.

Kaufman, K. 1996. Lives of North American Birds. Houghton Mifflin Company, Boston, Massachusetts. 675 pp.

Habitat: Thickets, brush, undergrowth of conifer and mixed woodlands. Breeds in zone of coniferous and mixed forest, mainly in openings having dense thickets of deciduous shrubs, such as around ponds, clearings, edges, roadsides, second growth. Winters in areas with dense low cover, including forest undergrowth and edges, well-vegetated suburbs and parks.

Diet: Mostly seeds and insects. Feeds heavily on insects during breeding season, including damselflies, ants, wasps, true bugs, beetles, flies, and caterpillars, plus spiders, millipedes, and snails. Winter diet is mostly seeds of weeds and grasses. Also eats many berries, especially in fall. Young are fed mostly insects.

Nest: Site usually on ground, well hidden by low shrubs (such as blueberry), grass, or ferns. Sometimes nests above ground in shrubs, brushpiles, or low trees, rarely up to 10 feet high. Nest is open cup made of grass, twigs, weeds, pine needles, lined with fine grass, rootlets, animal hair.