New Article on Sagebrush Sparrow Now Available

A new detailed article on the status and occurrence of the Sagebrush Sparrow (Artemisiospiza nevadensis) in British Columbia is now posted in the Notes and Articles section of E-Fauna BC.  Prepared by Rick Toochin, this article provides summary information on this species in the province.

Previously, we listed the Sage Sparow for BC, but recent nomenclatural changes have split that species.  Rick writes:  "[The] Sage Sparrow was split into two species from the two very distinct subspecies of Sage Sparrows found throughout their range (Retter 2013): Bell’s Sparrow and the Sagebrush Sparrow. Bell’s Sparrow is a non-migratory species found in coastal California (Byers et al. 1995, Beadle and Rising 2002)....The Sagebrush Sparrow (A. nevadensis) is found throughout the birds range with the subspecies (A. n. canescens) being confined to central California with these birds being a little bit smaller but otherwise are identical to the latter species in plumage characteristics (Byers et al. 1995, Beadle and Rising 2002)."

Read the PDF, with photos, here.  Or visit the species atlas page here.