Olive sparrow

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Olive sparrow
Arremonops rufivirgatus.jpg
Scientific classification Red Pencil Icon.png
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Passeriformes
Family: Passerellidae
Genus: Arremonops
Species:
A. rufivirgatus
Binomial name
Arremonops rufivirgatus
(Lawrence, 1851)
Arremonops rufivirgatus map.svg

The olive sparrow (Arremonops rufivirgatus) is a species of American sparrow in the family Passerellidae. (Other names include green finch and Texas sparrow.) Its range includes Belize, Costa Rica, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua and southern Texas (including the counties of Val Verde, Atascosa, and Nueces).

Contents

It is 14–15.5 centimetres (5.5–6.1 in) long, and is the only sparrow with an olive back. It has a prominent brown eye streak and a brown-striped crown, with a buff breast, some white belly feathers, and a conical beak. The sexes are similar, while the juvenile is more buff with some streaking on the belly. The olive sparrow looks similar to the green-tailed towhee but is smaller and lacks a rusty cap.

The olive sparrow does not migrate, and is resident in thickets, chaparral, and undergrowth near forests, from sea level to 6,000 feet (1,800 m). Males sing unmusical chip notes similar to the swamp sparrow.

The nest is built two to five feet above ground, and is large, made of straws, twigs, bark, leaves, and stems. Two to five eggs are laid each season (March to September) and are white and unspotted.

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References

  1. BirdLife International (2018). "Arremonops rufivirgatus". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2018: e.T22721392A132008603. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2018-2.RLTS.T22721392A132008603.en . Retrieved 25 September 2021.

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