Chipping sparrow(Spizella passerina) and
American tree sparrow (Spizella arborea) --- local seasonal appearance

Based on 86 observations in Seymour township, Northumberland county, southeast Ontario, 1999-2004.

The chipping sparrow is easy to find in the Campbellford area in May, June and July. Early and late sightings are the 18th and 25th of April and the 3rd of September (66 sightings in total; pink on chart). The American tree sparrow (orange on chart) is sometimes called the "winter chippy" because of its broadly similar appearance and strong association with winter cold spells in southern Ontario. One bird was seen close-up on Christmas Day, 1998, just before the start of the observation period, and another at a garden feeder near the end, on 15 December 2004. Seven other sightings which had initially been referred to the "chippy" (4 in October, 1 each in November, December and January) were in retrospect probably tree sparrows. The circumstantial evidence for these seven sightings, from the 19th October until 04 January, is quite persuasive.

The 15 December 2004 sighting occurred in the afternoon of a day which began at -15°C, in a brief cold snap following a rather mild autumn. That month, one or more birds were noted in each of 13 days from the 15th to the 31st. As of 26 January 2005, the sparrows had been seen on eight days in that month, in a period noted for strong temperature fluctuations, with the latest sighting on 26 January.

The seven revised identifications all occurred in cold weather, and generally the sparrows were in company with other winter birds such as juncos, chickadees and waxwings. The greatest possibility of confusion would seem to be in October, with a second possible overlap of the species in April-May. The alternating days of cold snaps and mild weather in the second half of December 2004 (20 December was the coldest day in the region since 1942) coincided with a protracted visit by tree sparrows in search of food.

The chipping sparrow is a common migrant and summer resident at Presqu'ile provincial park, roughly 40 km to the south, with an extreme early sighting on 06 April, a late date of 11 November, and one reported winter sighting in early January (LaForest, 1993, pp.346-347). The tree sparrow in contrast typically arrives in mid-October and stays until early spring. Peak fall migration occurs in November. Extreme sightings would be 16 September and 20 May.

In Peterborough county, to the northwest, the chipping sparrow is generally found from 02 April to 02 October, with extreme dates of 01 April and 26 October (Sadler, 1983, pp.146-147). One overwintering bird was reported. Sadler notes that the chippy lacks its red cap in winter, and when nesting likes to line its nest with horsehair, whence the old name "hair-bird". The tree sparrow is a winter visitor which varies markedly in abundance from one season to the next. It is largely confined to the interval from 2 October to 01 May.

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