White-Throated Sparrow, Lurie Garden

The White-Throated Sparrows and their allies have adjusted their diet to berries and seeds as a result of the drop in temperatures. While I still see them scratching around for bugs buried in the dirt, they are getting hungrier. I started feeding the White-Throated Sparrows at 155 N. Wacker Drive the past week and after a couple days they all came flying over to meet me on Friday.

Here’s a little video of one happy customer.

I was also trying to get footage or whatever you call video output of them getting into little arguments over whose birdseed it was. This video’s a bit longer and not terribly clear, given the light limitations I guess. Anyway I put it on YouTube if you’re curious. Yes, there’s a House Sparrow in there too, looking beaten at his own game.

Last week I managed to get photos of one White-Throated Sparrow eating berries which look just like the berries on the hawthorn tree in my backyard. I am still waiting for someone to discover them.

In among all the White-Throated Sparrows every once in a while there is a Song Sparrow or a juvenile White-Crowned Sparrow.

Song Sparrow

Juvenile White-Crowned Sparrow

Song Sparrow

Now that we’ve flirted with freezing, it’s warming up a bit again. It will be interesting to see if the fluctuating temperatures cause migrants to linger a bit longer.