Bird name:

Lapland Longspur

Calcarius lapponicus

Order

PASSERIFORMES

Family

Sparrows (Emberizidae)

Code 4

LALO

Code 6

CALLAP

ITIS

179526

Breeding Location:

Tundra

Breeding Type:

Monogamous, Solitary nester

Breeding Population:

Common to abundant

Egg Color:

Pale to gray green with brown and black markings

Number of Eggs:

4 - 7

Incubation Days:

10 - 14

Egg Incubator:

Female

Nest Material:

Grass, lichens, moss and rootlets.

Migration:

Migratory

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General

Lapland Longspur: Medium-sized, sparrow-like bird with brown-streaked black back. Underparts are white and streaked black on sides and flanks. Crown, face, and throat are black; nape is red-brown. Bill is yellow with dark tip. Tail is long with white edges. Winter male has mottled black crown, face, and throat. Female is duller with dark cheek patch. Juvenile shows more streaking on upperparts, breast, and sides.

Range and Habitat

Lapland Longspur: Breeds from Aleutians, Alaska, and Arctic islands to northern Quebec. Winters regularly throughout northern states to California, Texas, and New York.; also in northern Eurasia. Nests on Arctic tundra; in migration stays on alpine meadows. Winters on farm fields, pastures, grasslands, and grassy coastal dunes.

Breeding and Nesting

Lapland Longspur: Four to seven pale to gray-green eggs with brown and black markings are laid in a ground depression lined with grass, lichens, moss, and rootlets. Incubation ranges from 10 to 14 days and is carried out by the female.

Foraging and Feeding

Lapland Longspur: Feeds on insects and spiders; also eats seeds; forages on the ground and in snow.

Readily Eats

Safflower, Apple Slices, Suet, Millet, Peanut Kernels, Fruit

Vocalization

Lapland Longspur: Flight song is a rapid warbling. Call is a musical "tee-lee-oo" or "tee-dle", or dry rattling "drit-ri-it."

Similar Species

Lapland Longspur: Smith's Longspur is buff overall and has small, white wing patches.

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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.

Underparts

Belly, undertail coverts, chest, flanks, and foreneck.

Upperparts

Back, rump, hindneck, wings, and crown.

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