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Field
Guide IDs: BREEDING:
Grassland, prairie,
savanna, cultivated areas, fields with scattered
trees and shrubs. 1 brood. DISPLAYS:
Courtship: male
struts before female with bill pointed up, tail
spread, wings fluttering; flight song on rapidly
beating wings with spread tail. Twig often held by
female or passed to her during cop. NEST:
Often hollow
depression in ground lined with fine grass; nest in
shrub or rock crevice bulky, of grass, forbs,
foundation of twigs, lined with fine materials.
Often reuse their own nests and those of other
species (esp mockingbird and thrashers). Male and
female select site together. EGGS:
Creamy to
grayish-white, marked with dark browns, blacks,
often wreathed. 0.8" (20 mm). DIET:
Includes grass and
forb seeds. CONSERVATION:
Winters s to c
Mexico. Occ cowbird host. NOTES:
Gregarious, feeding
in flocks even in breeding season. Weak
territoriality disappears entirely when incubation
begins. Male often presents food to female on nest
and she feeds nestlings. Distraction display by
ground-nesting female: spreads tail and flutters
one or both wings. Male often sings at
night. ESSAYS: REFERENCES:
McNair,
1984. |
