Bird name:

Botteri's Sparrow

Aimophila botterii

Order

PASSERIFORMES

Family

Sparrows (Emberizidae)

Code 4

BOSP

Code 6

AIMBOT

ITIS

179390

Breeding Location:

Bushes, shrubs, and thickets, Grasslands

Breeding Type:

Monogamous, Solitary nester

Breeding Population:

Yes but uncommon

Egg Color:

Pale blue

Number of Eggs:

2 - 5

Incubation Days:

12 - 14

Egg Incubator:

Female

Nest Material:

Lined with finer materials., Grasses and rootlets.

Migration:

Some migrate

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General

Botteri's Sparrow: Medium-sized sparrow with brown-streaked, gray upperparts and pale gray underparts. Bill is gray. Wings are tinged rust-brown. Tail is gray-brown, long, and round-tipped. Sexes are similar. Juvenile is pale brown with dark streaks and pink-gray bill.

Range and Habitat

Botteri's Sparrow: Breeds in southeastern Arizona and southern Texas. Spends winters south of U.S.-Mexico border. Preferred habitats include open arid country such as grasslands, savannas, and desert-scrub.

Breeding and Nesting

Botteri's Sparrow: Two to five pale blue eggs are laid in a nest made of grass and rootlets, lined with finer materials, and built on the ground or in a grassy tussock, usually sheltered by tall grass or a shrub. Incubation ranges from 12 to14 days and is carried out by the female.

Foraging and Feeding

Botteri's Sparrow: Eats insects and seeds; forages on the ground.

Readily Eats

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

Vocalization

Botteri's Sparrow: Song is high, abrasive series of hesitant chips, followed by a bouncing-ball trill. Call is a thin "chick."

Similar Species

Botteri's Sparrow: Cassin's Sparrow has white tips on outer tail feathers. Grasshopper Sparrow is chunkier with buff underparts and buff streaks on upperparts.

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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.

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