Golden-crowned Sparrow in St. Louis County
2014-11-22

'Casual' in Minnesota - Five or fewer records in St. Louis County for the Fall season

Golden-crowned Sparrow (Zonotrichia atricapilla) in Duluth's Lakeside neighborhood, 22 November 2014. Following sporadic reports earlier this month, the bird was refound by Mike Hendrickson today and photographed for the first time. There is lots of cover in the neighborhood and the bird is probably visiting multiple feeders, usually accompanied by a White-throated Sparrow and several Dark-eyed Juncos. It took a handful of observers well over an hour to find the bird, since it was secretive, moved furtively and frequently through thick vegetation, and never visited a feeder during the time we were searching. This photo was obtained during one of the few times it was not surrounded by vegetation. It did sing at times, which might help observers locate the bird, but its song was fragmented, sometimes jumbled, and only vaguely reminiscent of the Golden-crowned's singing in northern California (where I lived for 7 years). If accepted by the MOU Records Committee, this will be the 11th state record and the 4th for St. Louis County, following overwintering birds in Duluth in 1989-90 and 2008-09, and an adult in Fredenberg Township 19-20 April 2012. Many thanks to neighborhood resident Jeff Newman!

Peder H. Svingen