Bird GuideNew World SparrowsLincoln's Sparrow

At a Glance

Generally a skulker in dense low cover, this sparrow often goes unnoticed during migration and winter -- especially in the East, where it is quite uncommon. In the West, birders soon learn to find it by its hard chep callnote in the bushes. Even where they are common, Lincoln's Sparrows tend to be solitary, not joining flocks. The musical song of the males is heard in summer in willow thickets of the North and the Mountain West.
Category
New World Sparrows, Perching Birds
Conservation
Low Concern
Habitat
Desert and Arid Habitats, Forests and Woodlands, Freshwater Wetlands, High Mountains, Shrublands, Savannas, and Thickets
Region
Alaska and The North, California, Eastern Canada, Florida, Great Lakes, Mid Atlantic, New England, Northwest, Plains, Rocky Mountains, Southeast, Southwest, Texas, Western Canada
Behavior
Direct Flight, Flitter
Population
88.000.000

Range & Identification

Migration & Range Maps

Season of migration is spread over a long period in both spring and fall, with some birds migrating both early and late, especially in the West.

Description

5-6" (13-15 cm). Contrasting face colors: buff "whisker," gray eyebrow, brown cheeks and crown. Rich buff chest has narrow black streaks. (Caution: juvenile Song Sparrows in summer can be buffy, with narrow streaks.)
Size
About the size of a Sparrow
Color
Black, Brown, Gray, Tan, White
Wing Shape
Broad
Tail Shape
Notched, Rounded, Square-tipped

Songs and Calls

A rich, gurgling, wren-like song rising in the middle and dropping abruptly at the end.
Call Pattern
Falling, Undulating
Call Type
Chirp/Chip, Trill, Whistle

Habitat

Willow and alder thickets, muskeg, brushy bogs. In winter, thickets, weeds, bushes. Breeds in northern and mountainous areas in dense low vegetation near water, such as streamside willow groves, bushy edges of bogs, brushy clearings in wet coniferous forest. Winters in dense thickets, overgrown fields.

Behavior

Eggs

4-5, sometimes 3-6. Pale green to greenish white, heavily spotted with reddish brown. Incubation is by female only, about 12-14 days. Female may remain on nest until approached very closely, then scurry away over the ground like a rodent.

Young

Both parents feed the nestlings. Young leave the nest about 9-12 days after hatching, may be tended by the parents for another 2-3 weeks or more.

Feeding Behavior

Forages mostly while hopping on the ground, typically under or close to dense thickets.

Diet

Mostly insects and seeds. Feeds on many insects, especially in summer, including caterpillars, beetles, moths, ants, flies, and many others, also spiders and millipedes. Seeds probably make up majority of diet, especially in winter; included are seeds of weeds and grasses. Young are probably fed entirely on insects

Nesting

Male defends nesting territory by singing. In some areas, may compete with Song Sparrows for territories, but Song Sparrows usually dominate. Nest site is on the ground, very well hidden under clump of grass or under dense shrubbery, often sunken in a depression in sphagnum moss or other ground cover. Nest (built by female only) is a shallow open cup of grasses or sedges, lined with fine grass and sometimes with animal hair.

Climate Vulnerability

Conservation Status

Still widespread and common.

Climate Map

Audubon’s scientists have used 140 million bird observations and sophisticated climate models to project how climate change will affect the range of the Lincoln's Sparrow. Learn even more in our Audubon’s Survival By Degrees project.

Climate Threats Facing the Lincoln's Sparrow

Choose a temperature scenario below to see which threats will affect this species as warming increases. The same climate change-driven threats that put birds at risk will affect other wildlife and people, too.

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