- Chestnut-collared Longspur
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Chestnut-collared Longspur 
Conservation status Scientific classification Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata Class: Aves Order: Passeriformes Family: Calcariidae Genus: Calcarius Species: C. ornatus Binomial name Calcarius ornatus
(Townsend, 1837)The Chestnut-collared Longspur, Calcarius ornatus, is a small ground-feeding bird from the family Calcariidae which also contains the longspurs.
Contents
Overview
These birds have a short conical bill, a streaked back and a white tail with a dark tip. In breeding plumage, the male has black underparts, a chestnut nape, a yellow throat and a black crown. Other birds have light brown underparts, a dark crown, brown wings and may have some chestnut on the nape.
This bird breeds in short and mixed grass prairies in central Canada and the north central United States. The female lays 4 or 5 eggs in a grass cup nest in a shallow scrape on the ground. The male sings and flies up to defend his territory. Both parents feed the young birds.
In winter, they migrate in flocks to prairies and open fields in the southern United States and Mexico.
These birds forage on the ground, gathering in flocks in winter. They mainly eat seeds, also eating insects in summer. Young birds are mainly fed insects.
The call is a two-syllabled chee dee.
Conservation
Like other prairie birds, they have disappeared from some areas due to habitat loss but are still fairly common.
Controlled burns may benefit this species as they feed on low-growing plants that are more easily spotted after a fire.[1]
References
- ^ Prairies to Pines: News from Minnesota, North Dakota, and South Dakota. (Fall 2010 Update). The Nature Conservancy.
- BirdLife International (2004). Calcarius ornatus. 2006. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. IUCN 2006. www.iucnredlist.org. Retrieved on 11 May 2006. Database entry includes justification for why this species is near threatened
External links
- Chestnut-collared Longspur Species Account - Cornell Lab of Ornithology
- Chestnut-collared Longspur - Calcarius ornatus - USGS Patuxent Bird Identification InfoCenter
- Chestnut-collared Longspur Information - South Dakota Birds and Birding
- Chestnut-collared Longspur videos on the Internet Bird Collection
- Chestnut-collared Longspur photo gallery VIREO
Categories:- IUCN Red List near threatened species
- Calcarius
- Birds of North America
- Birds of Canada
- Native birds of the Canadian Prairies
- Birds of the United States
- Native birds of the Plains-Midwest (United States)
- Birds of Mexico
- Fauna of the Chihuahuan Desert
- Native birds of Central Mexico
- Western North American migratory birds
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