All birds New World Sparrows
White-throated Sparrow
Zonotrichia albicollis
Here October to April.
Recorded by Paul Marvin. CC BY-NC-SA 4.0, via xeno-canto, trimmed and volume evened out.
Look for
- A bright white throat patch below a gray face.
- A small yellow spot between the bill and each eye.
- Black stripes on the head, with white or tan stripes between them. The bill is dark gray.
A little about it
White-throated Sparrows spend the winter here. They show up in late October and stay through April, and January has the most. In summer, most of them nest in Canada.
You'll often see small groups of 3 to 15 birds near bushes and big trees. They stay on the ground or close to it. To find food, they scratch in dead leaves with both feet.
In winter they eat mostly seeds from weeds and grass, plus lots of berries in fall. At feeders, they like millet and black-oil sunflower seeds. They'll come to a low tray feeder set 6 to 18 inches off the ground.
Listen for a clear, whistled song. Some people hear it as "sweet, sweet, Canada, Canada, Canada." Others hear "poor Sam Peabody, Peabody, Peabody."
Fun fact
Some White-throated Sparrows have white head stripes, and some have tan. A bird with white stripes almost always pairs up with a bird that has tan stripes.
When it's here
- January: here
- February: here
- March: here
- April: here
- May: not here
- June: not here
- July: not here
- August: not here
- September: not here
- October: here
- November: here
- December: here
Taller bars mean more sightings. Most often seen in January.
How big
6 to 7 inches. About as big as a sparrow, close to the size of a White-crowned Sparrow.
Where to look
Woods and creek banks, plus neighborhoods with big trees and bushes. Look on the ground under feeders and shrubs.
People have spotted it at Myriad Botanical Gardens, Stinchcomb Wildlife Refuge, Oklahoma City Zoo area.
Could it be something else?
White-crowned Sparrow
It has black and white head stripes too. Its bill is pink or orange, and it has no yellow spot and no bright white throat.
Young White-throated Sparrow
In their first winter, some young birds look duller, with blurry streaks on the chest. Check for the yellow spot by the eye and the dark bill.
More photos
Where these facts come from
- Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation field guide
- Audubon Guide to North American Birds
- When it's here: Sightings shared on iNaturalist in the 8 counties, all years.