Snapshot in summer: There?s a chipping sparrow feeding outside my office at the zoo and not a white-throated sparrow to be found.
Snapshot in winter: There?s a white-throated sparrow feeding outside my office at the zoo and not a chipping sparrow to be found.
Why am I seeing different birds out the window in summer and winter? Because these birds migrate!
Chipping sparrows nest in Maryland in summer and fly south to warmer places come fall. White-throated sparrows arrive in Maryland for the winter from farther north in the United States and Canada. Spring and fall are the best times to see birds migrating. During the day, you?ll see birds such as blue jays, flickers, geese, hawks and chimney swifts.
They typically fly in groups, all heading in the same direction. Why use up all this energy flying back and forth each year? Birds follow their stomachs.
In Maryland, there?s not enough food in winter to support every chipping sparrow.
When food competitors such as white-throated sparrows start arriving from the north, the chipping sparrows pack up and move to sunny Florida.
Provided by the Maryland Zoo. Visit www.marylandzoo.org.
