Chipping Sparrow Identification

The Four Keys to ID

• Size & Shape

  The Chipping Sparrow is a slender, fairly long-tailed sparrow with a medium-sized bill that is a bit small for a sparrow. Learning the shape of this classic Spizella sparrow is a key step in mastering sparrow identification.

  Relative Size

  Smaller, trimmer, and shorter tailed than a Song Sparrow; slightly larger than a chickadee.

  sparrow-sized or smaller

  Measurements

  • Both Sexes
  • • Length: 4.7-5.9 in (12-15 cm)
    • Weight: 0.4-0.6 oz (11-16 g)
    • Wingspan: 8.3 in (21 cm)

  © Brian Sullivan / Macaulay Library

• Color Pattern

  Summer Chipping Sparrows look clean and crisp, with frosty underparts, pale face, black line through the eye, topped off with a bright rusty crown. In winter, Chipping Sparrows are subdued, buff brown, with darkly streaked upperparts. The black line through the eye is still visible, and the cap is a warm but more subdued reddish brown.

• Behavior

  Chipping Sparrows feed on the ground, take cover in shrubs, and sing from the tops of small trees (often evergreens). You’ll often see loose groups of them flitting up from open ground. When singing, they cling to high outer limbs. On the ground they hop or run through grasses searching for seeds.

• Habitat

  Look for Chipping Sparrows in open woodlands and forests with grassy clearings across North America. You’ll also see them in parks, along roadsides, and in your backyard, particularly if you have feeders and trees.