Swamp Sparrow by David Whited

Swamp Sparrow

David Whited

Swamp Sparrow

Digital photography

Inv: MM-1580

The Swamp Sparrow (*Melospiza georgiana*) is a medium-sized, rufous-toned sparrow with a reddish-brown cap, gray face, streaked brown back, and a plain grayish breast that distinguishes it from the more heavily streaked Song Sparrow, along with rusty wings and a long tail often held cocked upward; as its name suggests, it favors wet habitats such as freshwater marshes, bogs, and wetland edges across the northern and eastern United States and Canada during breeding season, migrating to wetlands and brushy areas farther south in winter, where it forages low in dense vegetation or wades into shallow water for insects, seeds, and aquatic invertebrates, and sings a slow, sweet, trilling song of repeated single notes.