This is Bird Note.

You'll have to listen closely to hear this summer's songster.

That persistent, buzzy song is the Savannah Sparrow.

Savannah Sparrow's are abundant and open habitats throughout North America, including

grasslands and pastures, even salt marshes.

Ornithologist Alexander Wilson named this sparrow for Savannah, Georgia, where he saw

one.

In spring, Savannah Sparrow's migrate north from the southern U.S. and Mexico to open

agricultural fields, meadows, coastal grasslands, and even tundra to breed and raise young.

They nest on the ground and walk, run, or hop to catch insects and spiders.

It's an understated bird, creamy colored with brownish streaks, but it's not just another

little brown bird.

Look closely, and you can see its yellow eyebrow stripe.

If you're lucky, you may even see it raise its crown feathers.

And be sure to listen for the Savannah Sparrow in open, unmoved sections of city parks.

You might mistake it for an insect.

For Bird Note, I'm Mary McCann.

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