Lark Sparrow

The lark sparrow is distinctive. Adults have a typically sparrow-like dark-streaked brown back, and white underparts except for a dark central spot. The cheeks and crown sides are chestnut, with white eyebrow and crown stripes. The dark tail's corners are also white. Young lark sparrows are duller, and the underparts are streaked. Measurements:

Length: 5.9–6.7 in (15–17 cm) Weight: 0.8–1.2 oz (24–33 g) Wingspan: 11.0 in (28 cm)

It breeds in southern Canada, much of the United States, and northern Mexico. It is much less common in the east, where its range is contracting. The populations in Mexico and adjacent states of the United States are resident, but other birds are migratory, wintering in the southern United States, Mexico and south to Guatemala. It is a very rare vagrant to western Europe, with two accepted records in Great Britain in 1981 and 1991.

They forage on the ground or in low bushes. They mainly eat seeds, but insects, including grasshoppers, are also eaten in the breeding season. They form flocks on migration or in winter. When an occupied nest is approached by a predator, adult female lark sparrows are known to exhibit a distraction display.