Thursday 16 December 2010

Tree Sparrow

Below are some photo`s of a couple of Tree Sparrows taken at Rutland Water. This little brown bird has had it quite hard over the past few decades, but thankfully here in Peterborough and the surrounding area we have a few thriving populations.

It is slightly smaller and `neater` with a more rounded head than the more familiar House Sparrow. It has a pale collar around the back of the neck, a chocolate brown cap with no grey on the crown and a small isolated dark patch on the cheeks. It also has a double white wing-bar, although this can be difficult to see. Both male and female look alike.

The Tree Sparrow is rather shyer than the House Sparrow and in Europe it is less associated with humans, although in parts of Asia it is common around houses.

The species is mainly sedantry, especially in Britain, but some that breed in northern Europe and Russia do make short migrations with some Conitinental birds crossing the North Sea to reach Britain in autumn and return in spring.

As I said at the beginning this bird has suffered lately with latest figures showing a decline of over 80% in the last 25 years, the biggest of which occured in the 1970`s and 80`s. This decline appears to be linked to intensification of agriculture, especially autumn sowing of crops which reduces the number of stubble fields, on which the birds like to feed and also the use of herbicides and pesticides. The clearance of hedges and trees have also made the survival of winter more difficult. Thankfully there are a few farmers which have halted this decline by changing their farming practices, one of which is Vine House Farm in Deeping St.Nicholas near Peterborough. Others will hopefully join in.






8 comments:

  1. Neither of these birds are common around these parts now. My brother in Old Harlow says there is a large bush near there and he saw "60 or 70" sparrows around it. It's a real pleasure when one appears now.
    Bazza’s Blog ‘To Discover Ice’

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  2. Hi bazza, yes the House and Tree Sparrow are both having a bad time of it lately. We don`t have either in our garden on a regular basis, in fact I get quite excited when one does appear!
    J

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  3. A little confusing then, if both sexes look the same. I assume one sings higher than the other? Or how would they know?

    I particularly like that last picture; looks like they’re deep in discussion.

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  4. Dear John,
    beautiful pictures again! And I once read that it is very difficult to take pictures of sparrows. To be shyer than the house sparrow cannot be very difficult :-), in Germany we say "a cheeky sparrow". Of house sparrows we have a lot here in Berlin - about 30 sitting in a bush on the other side of the street - now I found out that somebody is feeding them - that is the solution why they meet there! I like especially the older ones with little black robber masks over their eyes! I wish you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! Britta

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  5. Only the male bird sings Mask. This goes for most birds, although both sexes make call notes.
    J

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  6. Thanks Britta.
    In Britain the House Sparrow is also known as `cheeky`, but they are getting increasingly scarce aswell. In fact the population has crashed by over 60% in the last 20 years and although not rare, they are a lot less common than they used to be!
    Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to you too.
    J

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  7. Very glad to have happened on you--courtesy of Britta. Watching birds is such a marvelous way to spend one's time. Even though I haven't the proper equipment, I like to try and photograph them, too: bird posts. Not a patch on your wonderful photographs, but in the event you want to take a peak! Meanwhile, I will look forward to learning more and seeing more great bird photographs on your blog.

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  8. Hi Raining Acorns,
    Thankyou very much for your kind words. I do enjoy watching birds, but all forms of wildlife fascinate me!
    I will indeed check out your blog and look forward to hearing from you again.
    Thanks for the `Follow`!
    J

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