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Animal profile

White-throated Sparrow

Zonotrichia albicollis

AvesBoreal forest edge and clearings when breeding, thickets and gardens in winterLeast Concern

Field profile

The white-throated sparrow is a large sparrow with a bright white throat patch and yellow spot before the eye. It occurs in two permanent adult forms, one with white crown stripes and one with tan. Its whistled song is a familiar sound of the boreal forest.

Scope note

This is an editorial profile, not a diagnostic field-identification guide or a substitute for current conservation assessments. Follow the cited sources on each fact for the evidence trail.

Published field notes

2023-02-03

White-throated Sparrow

This sparrow has effectively four sexes

White-throated sparrows come in white-striped and tan-striped forms, determined by a large inverted chromosome segment. Birds almost always pair with the opposite morph, so mating is organised around four categories rather than two.

Read with evidence →

White-throated Sparrow | Daily Animal Facts