I was shooting around our feeders in the back yard and took quite a few images of this fellow. J thought he was just a common House Sparrow. Then after I studied it a bit I thoughmaybe it was some kind of real sparrow, but I can't find any that look like it. Is it just a Housr Sparrow? Thanks for any help.
Mac, you are quite right that you have something other than a House Sparrow here. In fact it is a Lincoln's Sparrow. Sparrow ID is not very easy for me to describe to others...often it's a gut feeling based upon past experience. :) The lack of large patches of color (black, etc.) and streaking on the breast lead me away from a House Sparrow right away. The streaking is fairly fine and crisp which sets it apart from the Song Sparrow too.