White-throated Sparrow Identification

The Four Keys to ID

• Size & Shape

  The White-throated Sparrow is a large, full-bodied sparrow with a fairly prominent bill, rounded head, long legs, and long, narrow tail.

  Relative Size

  Slightly larger than a Song Sparrow

  sparrow-sized or smaller

  Measurements

  • Both Sexes
  • • Length: 6.3-7.1 in (16-18 cm)
    • Weight: 0.8-1.1 oz (22-32 g)
    • Wingspan: 7.9-9.1 in (20-23 cm)

  © Daniel Jauvin / Macaulay Library

• Color Pattern

  White-throated Sparrows are brown above and gray below with a striking head pattern. The black-and-white-striped head is augmented by a bright white throat and yellow between the eye and the bill, which is gray. You’ll also see a less boldly marked form, known as “tan-striped,” with a buff-on-brown face pattern instead of white-on-black.

• Behavior

  White-throated Sparrows stay near the ground, scratching through leaves in search of food, often in flocks. You may see them low in bushes as well, particularly in spring when they eat fresh buds. White-throated Sparrows sing their distinctive songs frequently, even in winter.
• Habitat

  Look for White-throated Sparrows in woods, at forest edges, in the regrowth that follows logging or forest fires, at pond and bog edges, and in copses near treeline. In winter you can find these birds in thickets, overgrown fields, parks, and woodsy suburbs. They readily come to backyards for birdseed.