Thick-billed Longspur Photo Gallery

Breeding male

Chunky, sparrowlike grassland bird. Breeding males have a black breast, gray belly, chestnut wing patch, and a gray-and-white face.

Female

Chunky grassland bird with a stout bill. Females have a stout pink bill and chestnut wing patches that can sometimes be difficult to see. Note unstreaked whitish belly.

Breeding male

Song is a soft tinkling warble. Males usually sing while flying, as part of an aerial display, but also sing while perched on an elevated surface such as a rock, fence, or shrub.

Male display

Male flutters upward and descends on outstretched wings and tail during aerial displays on the breeding grounds. The outstretched tail is white with a black T.

Flock

Forms flocks outside of the breeding season. Note black T on the tail and black band on the breast of the males.

Breeding male

Breeding males have a black breast band and crown and a chestnut wing patch.

Immature female

Immatures have a chunky bill, a broad stripe over the eye, a smudgy brown band across the breast, and unstreaked white underparts. They don't have rufous in the wing like adults do.