Reprinted by permission of the Tucson Bird Alliance. Written by Louie Dombroski, former Paton Center Birder-In-Residence.
An exuberant song erupts from an elderberry bough, a brush pile, or a thick sedge tussock at the Paton Center for Hummingbirds. It consists of a pleasing trill introduced by a fanfare of crisp, clear notes, and ends with a few more of the same as a brief encore. It’s a Song Sparrow, and since that name can only be awarded to one species, the one that was given the scientific name “Melospiza melodia” is as good a choice as any. Some have likened the introductory notes of its song to the beginning of Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony. While the key and chord progression might be off, the pacing of the notes and their bold and abrupt nature make this an apt comparison.
While visitors may recognize the song, they may be puzzled when they spot the singer. The resident subspecies in Southeast Arizona is lighter colored than those from other parts of the species’s range. The medium to dark browns of other Song Sparrows’ plumage is replaced in ours by a paler orangish brown, sometimes leading them to be mistaken for Fox Sparrows. Song Sparrows are one of the streakiest of sparrows on their undersides, but our resident birds are marked with streaks that not only sport the telltale paler ruddy color of this form, but are also reduced in number. Identification is more challenging in the winter, when we also have members of the darker-plumaged migratory northern subspecies of Song Sparrow visiting, along with Lincoln’s Sparrows, and rarely, even an actual Fox Sparrow. Song Sparrows occur year-round in Southeast Arizona, and when summer arrives, they are the most likely sparrow to be seen.
A habitat generalist in much of its range, in Southeast Arizona the scarcity of water strictly limits Song Sparrows to riparian areas. They’re often easy to find along the Santa Cruz and San Pedro Rivers wherever there is dense enough vegetation to provide food, cover, and suitable sites for nesting—excellent habitat for Arizona’s foxy Song Sparrows.