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Sprague's Pipit
Anthus spragueii
Audubon Illustration
John James Audubon, Birds of America (1827-1838). Public domain.
Migration Flyway
Showing primary migration corridor(s) for this species
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About the Sprague's Pipit
Sprague's pipit (Anthus spragueii) is a small songbird (passerine) in the family Motacillidae that breeds in the short- and mixed-grass prairies of North America. Migratory, it spends the winters in the southwestern United States and northern Mexico. Sprague's pipits are unusual among songbirds in that they sing high in the sky, somewhat like a goldfinch or skylark. It is more often identified by its distinctive descending song heard from above than by being seen on the ground. Males and females are cryptically coloured and similar in appearance; they are a buffy brown with darker streaking, slender bills and pinkish to yellow legs.
Source: Wikipedia
Classification
- Scientific name
- Anthus spragueii
- Family
- Wagtails and Pipits
- Order
- Passeriformes
Similar species
Other members of the wagtails and pipits family recorded in North America — a useful place to start if you are not certain of your identification.
- American Pipit Anthus rubescens
- Citrine Wagtail Motacilla citreola
- Eastern Yellow Wagtail Motacilla tschutschensis
- Gray Wagtail Motacilla cinerea
- Olive-backed Pipit Anthus hodgsoni
- Pechora Pipit Anthus gustavi
- Red-throated Pipit Anthus cervinus
- Siberian Pipit Anthus japonicus
- Tree Pipit Anthus trivialis
- White Wagtail Motacilla alba
Know when the Sprague's Pipit turns up near you
How rare bird alerts work →Gear for spotting Sprague's Pipit
Optics
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Cameras
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