Thia little bird that I photographed this past weekend is not in a tree, but I am pretty sure that he is an American Tree Sparrow (Spizella arborea). The reddish eye stripe and the two-toned bill made this identification easier than usual for me. This sparrow was amazingly active, pecking at a variety of plants close to the ground.
Why is he called a Tree Sparrow if he’s not in a tree? According to the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, the birds were misleadingly named by European settlers reminded of Eurasian Tree Sparrows back home. American Tree Sparrows are in fact ground birds that forage on the ground and nest on the ground.
Has anyone ever told you that you eat like a bird? If so, I hope they weren’t referring to this sparrow. American Tree Sparrows need to take in about 30 percent of their body weight in food and a similar percentage in water each day, according to the Cornell Lab website.
American Tree Sparrow
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Mike Powell 
great capture. this is one I haven’t seen locally.
Nice photo, Mike. In fact, better than the one in my bird book!
Great shot! This is one bird that I see quite often.
A nice capture indeed.