Plectrophenax nivalis
When autumn snows dust the eastern slopes of the Rockies, Snow Buntings are surely close behind. Unlike most migrant songbirds found in the Rockies, Snow Buntings arrive in the Rockies in fall and endure winter in small, tight flocks. Although wintering Snow Buntings prefer the endless and expansive open areas of the Great Plains, each winter a few of these hardy songbirds arrive to scratch and peck at exposed seeds and grains in open areas of the Rockies. As flocks of Snow Buntings lift in unison, the startling black-and-white contrast of their plumage flashes characteristically against the clean white backdrop. The northern wanderings of summer Snow Buntings are not exceeded by any other songbird. A single individual (likely misguided and lost) has been recorded not far from the North Pole. |
I.D.: Non-breeding: white underparts; light golden-brown crown and back (male has a paler back); pale bill. In flight: black wing tips and tail contrast with the light body plumage. Size: L 6-71/2 in. (15-19 cm). Range: rare migrant and variably abundant winter visitor throughout the Rockies. Habitat: grasslands, frozen marshes, roadsides and railways from the lowlands to the montane. Nesting: in the northern Arctic; in a rocky crevice, among boulders or on the ground; bulky cup nest is loosely built of grass, lichens and roots and lined with feathers and fur; female incubates 4-7 eggs for 10-16 days. Feeding: Winter: gleans the ground and snow for seeds and waste grain. Summer: eats insects and seeds. Voice: spring song is a musical, high-pitched chi-chi-churee; call is a whistled tew. Similar Species: Lapland Longspur: brown, mottled back; doesn't show the white-and-black contrast in flight. |
