Most Midwestern sparrows are permanent or winter residents. Among "summer sparrows," the small, slender chipping sparrow is perhaps the most common. Favoring wooded meadows and woodland borders, this handsome bird is also fairly common in urban parks and residential areas. Easily identified by its bright chestnut crown, prominent white eyebrow, black eye line and gray nape patch, the adult chipping sparrow also has two white wing bars and a long, notched tail.
In the past, chipping sparrows were known as "hair birds" due to their habit of lining their nests with horse hair; they still use animal hair in rural areas but have otherwise adapted to the industrial age by using fine plant materials. Summering across southern Canada and through most of the lower forty-eight, they feed on seeds and insects, typically foraging on the ground and flying into nearby trees as you approach. Migrants are most often seen in residential areas during mid spring (late April to early May) and again in early October; wintering grounds are along coastal areas of the southern U.S. and in Mexico.
