A sharply marked little bird of the arid zones. In winter it may occur in small flocks, foraging inconspicuously on the ground in brushy areas, sometimes associating with Chipping or Brewer's sparrows. Also eats grasses and herbs. The black-throated sparrow frequents the hottest, driest parts of desert uplands, creosote bush and desert scrub environments that are sparsely vegetated, strongly insulated desert terrain, either steeply sloped or essentially flat *05,06*. In The birds of North America, No. Common house sparrows also eat plant and flower buds, crops, insects, berries, animal feed, and human food waste. Forages on the ground and in low vegetation. In the desert Southwest, water can be scarce. While Birds of the World is a subscription service, we remain committed to offering this content to Neotropical Birds contributors and to those unable to pay for it through our scholarship program. A small, long-tailed bird of arid southwestern hills, the Black-chinned Sparrow is quite localized and sometimes overlooked. Between 1966 and 2014, the species has undergone a cumulative decline of 54 percent across its range, according to the North American Breeding Bird Survey. Yet some birds, like this Black-throated Sparrow, thrive in a scorching landscape. Black-throated Sparrow: Medium sparrow, gray-brown upperparts, white underparts, black bib. House Sparrows Nesting Habits. The female lays 3 to 4 white or pale blue eggs. The white-throated sparrow is a medium sized sparrow with striped brown upper parts. Sparrow of the Sage . An anti-predation adaption the black-throated sparrow has developed is to "freeze" when a predator is near their nest. The tail is long and rounded, and mainly black with some white patches on the outer feathers. Ad. This region spans through Baja, California, Arizona, Texas, and all the way south as central Mexico. Barrel cacti are found in the southwest region of North America. Head has dark gray cap and sharply contrasting white eyebrow and cheek stripe. At Wild Birds Unlimited, we are trained to show you how to turn your yard into a birdfeeding habitat that not only brings song, color and life to your home, but also benefits the wild birds and the environment in your area. House Sparrows eat a greater variety of food than native sparrows, including garbage from humans, ragweed, crabgrass, livestock feed, grain crops such as oats, wheat and sorghum. The bill is dark and conical. Legs and feet are gray. [song of Black-throated Sparrow] Now, a Cactus Wren announces itself atop a barrel cactus. BLACK-THROATED SPARROW FACTS Description The Black-throated Sparrow has gray body with white underside.