Subject: Lincoln's Sparrow
Date: Oct 25 20:02:59 1996
From: "CHRISTINE W. MAACK" - 73201.3124 at CompuServe.COM


Here in Alaska, LISP and Song Sparrow do not look much alike at all, since we
have the big dark coastal Song Sparrows. However, in Hyder, AK, last June I
heard what at first I thought was a SOSP song, except the vocal quality wasn't
quite right. The pattern (chink-chink-chink-brrrrrr-dt-dt-dt) was quite passable
SOSP. After a devilishly long search, we found the bird sitting perfectly still
near the top of a small spruce which overlooked a salt marsh, and it was a
Lincoln's. Their songs around Anchorage are not nearly so rigidly patterned and
sound more wren-like.

This is not the first time I've seen a sparrow sing a different species' song,
but the other time was too wierd to even talk to other birders about, as I
realized after I had.

Chris Maack
Bird Treatment & Learning Center
Anchorage, AK
73201.3124 at compuserve.com