Chipping Sparrow at the feeder.

A crisp, pretty sparrow whose bright rufous cap both provides a splash of color and makes adults fairly easy to identify.

In 1929, naturalist Edward Forbush called the Chipping Sparrow “the little brown-capped pensioner of the dooryard and lawn, that comes about farmhouse doors to glean crumbs shaken from the tablecloth by thrifty housewives.”

Chipping sparrows are warm season birds here. Welcome, little harbinger of spring!