Listen to the Rufous-collared sparrow
Tip: press play to see the sound's live frequency spectrum in blue over the waveform.
About the Rufous-collared sparrow
The Rufous-collared sparrow is a bird in the family Passerellidae (order Passeriformes). Its conservation status on the IUCN Red List is “least concern”. Adults have a wingspan of about 22 cm and weigh around 20 g.
What does the Rufous-collared sparrow sound like?
Most birds have two kinds of vocalisation: songs, which are learned or innate phrases delivered mainly in spring and summer, and calls – brief contact, alarm and begging notes heard all year round. Listening for both helps with identification.
The recordings here are labelled as song and call. Listen for differences in rhythm, pitch and repetition – the spectrum display makes it easy to see whether a sound is a pure whistle (a thin line), a harsh call (a broad band) or a trill (rapid repeated marks).
From Wikipedia
The rufous-collared sparrow or Andean sparrow (Zonotrichia capensis) is an American sparrow found in a wide range of habitats, often near humans, from the extreme south-east of Mexico to Tierra del Fuego, and the island of Hispaniola in the Caribbean. It has diverse vocalizations, which have been intensely studied since the 1970s, particularly by Paul Handford and Stephen C. Lougheed (UWO), Fernando Nottebohm (Rockefeller University) and Pablo Luis Tubaro (UBA). Local names for this bird include the Portuguese tico-tico and mariquinha, the Aymara Pichitanka the Spanish copetón ("tufted") in Colombia, as well as chingolo and chincol, comemaíz "corn eater" in Costa Rica, chincol in Chile and Cigua de Constanza in the Dominican Republic.
Related birds in the genus Zonotrichia
More from the family Passerellidae
Dark-eyed junco
Junco hyemalis
American tree sparrow
Spizelloides arborea
Savannah sparrow
Passerculus sandwichensis
Fox sparrow
Passerella iliaca
Chipping sparrow
Spizella passerina
Eastern towhee
Pipilo erythrophthalmus
Lincoln's sparrow
Melospiza lincolnii
Tanager finch
Oreothraupis arremonops
Spotted towhee
Pipilo maculatus
Swamp sparrow
Melospiza georgiana
Frequently asked questions
What does a Rufous-collared sparrow sound like?
You can hear 6 recordings of the Rufous-collared sparrow on this page, including its song and call. Most birds have two kinds of vocalisation: songs, which are learned or innate phrases delivered mainly in spring and summer, and calls – brief contact, alarm and begging notes heard all year round.
Is the Rufous-collared sparrow endangered?
The IUCN Red List classifies the Rufous-collared sparrow as “least concern”.
What family does the Rufous-collared sparrow belong to?
The Rufous-collared sparrow (Zonotrichia capensis) belongs to the family Passerellidae in the order Passeriformes.
Sources & credits
- Song · Pichincha: La Buena Esperanza, Tumbaco, Ecuador by Niels Krabbe – CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
- Song · Zamora-Chinchipe: Reserva Tapichalaca, Ecuador by Niels Krabbe – CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
- Song · Loja: Quebrada Sayo 4 km SSW Santiago, Ecuador by Niels Krabbe – CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
- Call · Loja: Papaya, s bank of Río Paquishapa, Ecuador by Niels Krabbe – CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
- Song · Napo: pass of Cord. de los Guacamayos, Ecuador by Niels Krabbe – CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
- Song · Zamora-Chinchipe: Bellavista, Palanda-Zumba road, Ecuador by Niels Krabbe – CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
- Wikidata Q587505 – CC0
- Wikipedia: Rufous-collared sparrow – CC BY-SA 4.0
- Photo by dfaulder – CC BY 2.0