BirdWatching

ID TIPS: Golden-crowned Sparrow

THREE SAD, SWEET whistles in a descending pattern — oh, dear, me — make up the simple song of the Golden-crowned Sparrow. It’s a common voice of summer in Alaska and northwestern Canada, and it’s also heard from wintering flocks all along the western edge of the continent.

The Golden-crowned Sparrow is a bird of the West — or, to be precise, the far West. Its breeding range encompasses most of Alaska and the westernmost provinces of Canada, and its normal wintering range extends from southern British Columbia south through Washington, Oregon, and California into northern Baja California. Even just a little farther east, such as in Arizona or Utah, it’s only a scarce visitor. This distributional pattern is not matched by any other bird.

Like the White-crowned Sparrow, which is a close relative, the Golden-crowned lives

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