- Peucaea cassinii
Aimophila cassinii
Identification
13-15 cm (5-6 in)
- Grey brown
- Back appears scalloped
- Grey eyestripe
- Small yellow patch at bend of wing
- White tipped tail
- Dark brown iris
- Upper mandible dark grey brown, lower blue grey
- Dark pink legs
Sexes alike
Distribution
Breeds in western Colorado, in the southwest corner of Nebraska, western Kansas and Oklahoma, western half of Texas, south and eastern New Mexico, and far southwestern Arizona as well as much of Mexico.
Winters in southern Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, and Mexico Accidental vagrant to northeast (New York, Maine, New Jersey and Nova Scotia), midwest (Ohio, Ontario, Illinois, Indiana and Michigan) and in the west (California (several records) and Nevada).
Taxonomy
Was formerly placed in genus Aimophila.
Habitat
Dry grasslands with scattered small trees and shrubs.
Behaviour
Diet
Their main diet consists of seeds; however insects, particularly grasshoppers, bugs, ants and wasps are consumed during the nesting period.
Breeding
The nest is an open cup made from grass, lined with fine grasses. The clutch consists of 3-5 white eggs.
References
- Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, D. Roberson, T. A. Fredericks, B. L. Sullivan, and C. L. Wood. 2017. The eBird/Clements checklist of birds of the world: v2017, with updates to August 2017. Downloaded from http://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/
- 51st supplement to the AOU checklist of North American birds
- All About Birds
Recommended Citation
- BirdForum Opus contributors. (2025) Cassin's Sparrow. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 2 May 2025 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/Cassin%27s_Sparrow
External Links
GSearch checked for 2020 platform.1
