Song Sparrows are one of many “little brown birds” that can be found throughout most of North America, but they can be fairly easy to identify once you know what to look for. Like most sparrows, they are small and mostly brown in color.
All in Bird Watching
Wildlife Watching Wednesday: The Handsome Caspian Tern
The Caspian tern is the largest of all terns and can be found all over the world. It is about the size of an American crow. It migrates through much of the United States in the springtime, and in North America it breeds in isolated spots along the Great Lakes and large bodies of water in Canada.
Wildlife Watching Wednesday: The Black-Throated Green Warbler
There are dozens of species of warbler birds in the world, and a large number of them migrate into and through the United States each year. One of the most striking-looking warblers is the Black-Throated Green Warbler.
Wildlife Watching Wednesday: The Beautiful Lesser Yellowlegs
One of the most beautiful long-distance migratory shore birds of North America is the Lesser Yellowlegs. These handsome wading birds spend the winter in South America and migrate north through the entire United States, from the east coast to the west coast, up into northern Canada and Alaska to breed.
Wildlife Watching Wednesday: The Stately Eastern Kingbird
Have you ever seen a handsome black and white bird that is perched on a tree branch or fence post that suddenly flies out several feet and grabs an insect in mid-air, then flies back to the same perch?
Wildlife Watching Wednesday: The Spotted Sandpiper
There are plenty of shorebirds in North America, but one of the most widespread and interesting ones is the Spotted Sandpiper. These attractive birds are the size of an American Robin, but that’s where the similarities end.
Wildlife Watching Wednesday: The Very Tricky Killdeer
Most birds do a great job of raising their young and keeping them safe from predators, but one bird species in particular uses an ingenious trick to keep people and predators away from its nest. That bird is the common Killdeer.
Wildlife Watching Wednesday: The Very Vocal Dickcissel
Have you ever heard of a bird called the Dickcissel? It seems like a very strange name, but like the names of many birds, the name comes from the song that this bird sings.
Wildlife Watching Wednesday: The Secretive Sora
There is a very secretive bird out there that is an expert at evading the sight of most people. It is a relatively small bird that loves wetlands and marshy areas, and it spends most of its time walking along muddy shorelines amid reeds and thick cattail stands looking for food.
Wildlife Watching Wednesday: The Miniature Blue-Gray Gnatcatcher
When it comes to small, hyperactive birds, the Blue-Gray Gnatcatcher is right up there near the top of the list. These tiny birds are smaller than a house wren, but larger than a hummingbird. They are a bluish-gray color on their backs and head, with a white belly and a bright white eye-ring around their eyes.
Wildlife Watching Wednesday: The Rose-Breasted Grosbeak
One of the common forest birds of the northeastern and north-central United States is the Rose-Breasted Grosbeak. This beautiful bird is slightly smaller than an American robin, but larger than a house finch.
Yellow Headed Blackbirds Take Flight in Wisconsin
One of the harbingers of spring is the return of the red-winged blackbirds. A much less common spring sighting, at least east of the Mississippi River, is the yellow-headed blackbird. In fact because they’re so uncommon, they’re listed as a species of special concern in Wisconsin.