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Bird name:

Nelson's Sharp-tailed Sparrow

Ammodramus nelsoni

Order

PASSERIFORMES

Family

Sparrows (Emberizidae)

Code 4

NSTS

Code 6

AMMNEL

ITIS

554031

Breeding Location:

Marshes, saltwater

Breeding Type:

Polygamous, Loose colonies

Breeding Population:

Fairly common

Egg Color:

Light green with heavy brown spotting

Number of Eggs:

3 - 7

Incubation Days:

Egg Incubator:

Female

Nest Material:

Grasses, Stems

Migration:

Migratory

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General

Nelson's Sharp-tailed Sparrow: Small sparrow with brown streaked upperparts. Breast and sides are pale brown with pale streaks; throat, belly, and undertail coverts are white. Head has gray-brown crown and nape, orange-brown face, and gray cheeks. Tail is short and pointed. Sexes are similar. Juvenile has less gray.

Range and Habitat

Nelson's Sharp-tailed Sparrow: Breeds from northern Illinois northward to Dakota and Manitoba; occurs as a migrant on the Atlantic coast, and winters from South Carolina to Texas. Inhabits salt marshes.

Breeding and Nesting

Nelson's Sharp-tailed Sparrow: Three to seven light green eggs with heavy brown spots are laid in an open cup nest made of dry grass and stems, and attached to vegetation close to the ground. Eggs are incubated for 11 days by the female.

Foraging and Feeding

Nelson's Sharp-tailed Sparrow: Feeds mainly on insects, aquatic invertebrates, and seeds. Forages on the ground or in marsh vegetation; sometimes probes mud.

Readily Eats

Sunflower Seed, Commercial Mixed Bird Seed

Vocalization

Nelson's Sharp-tailed Sparrow: Call is a raspy trill, "p-tssssshh-uk."

Similar Species

Nelson's Sharp-tailed Sparrow: Saltmarsh Sharp-tailed Sparrow has a white throat separated from orange-brown face by a dark streak and heavier streaked breast.

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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.

Undertail coverts

Small feathers that cover the areas where the retrices (tail feathers) attach to the rump.

Upperparts

Back, rump, hindneck, wings, and crown.

Belly

The ventral part of the bird, or the area between the flanks on each side and the crissum and breast. Flight muscles are located between the belly and the breast.

Breast

The upper front part of a bird.

Crown

The crown is the top part of the birds head.

Face

The front part of the head consisting of the bill, eyes, cheeks and chin.

Nape

Also called the hindneck or collar, it is the back of the neck where the head joins the body.

4 and 6 letter alpha codes

The four letter common name alpha code is is derived from the first two letters of the common first name and the first two letters of common last name. The six letter species name alpha code is derived from the first three letters of the scientific name (genus) and the first three letters of the scientific name (species). See (1) below for the rules used to create the codes..

Four-letter (for English common names) and six-letter (for scientific names) species alpha codes were developed by Pyle and DeSante (2003, North American Bird-Bander 28:64-79) to reflect A.O.U. taxonomy and nomenclature (A.O.U. 1998) as modified by Supplements 42 (Auk 117:847-858, 2000) and 43 (Auk 119:897-906, 2002). The list has been updated by Pyle and DeSante to reflect changes reported by the A.O.U from 2003 through 2006.

Field Guide to Birds of North America