Returning to our Littleton, Colorado, farm after a six-week absence, I was pleased to observe flocks of dark-eyed juncos foraging on the property. These small, attractive sparrows breed across Alaska and Canada and southward through the mountain corridors of North America. Represented by six subspecies, four of which have limited ranges in the West, all dark-eyed juncos are easily identified by their small size, their clean-edged plumage, their habit of feeding in flocks on the ground and their outer, white tail feathers that become evident as they fly off.
While they consume insects and feed them to nestlings on their breeding territory, juncos feast primarily on seeds and often gather beneath bird feeders. Though they favor open, coniferous forest when nesting, they tend to gather in grassy areas with scattered shrubs and trees during the colder months (hence their common presence in suburbs).
Generally arriving on their wintering grounds by mid October, dark-eyed juncos form large flocks by early spring and head north (or into the mountains) by April. Until then, we are pleased to host them on our farm.
