Watch your surroundings long enough, and something distinctly odd may turn up — in this case a tufted sparrow.
The bird is obviously a chick. It did not seem capable of flight and merely sat on the edge of a road. Two questions: What kind of bird is it? Why does it have antler-like feathery tufts extending from its head?
There have been really occasional sightings of tufted House Finch chicks, and a juvenile Chipping Sparrow, something my chick might be. However, I can find strikingly little information on such birds.
This tufted sparrow has confused me.
How did this poor little sparrow wind up on the road.?
He looks so sad and unhappy
Any news on this mystery? The “bill” looks sort of deformed. In searching online about ID for baby birds I found that Julie Zickefoose had written a book on them. On her website
http://www.juliezickefoose.com
there is a place to write to her. She might have some ideas. This is very interesting!
Sarah, ah a relevant book — nice. I wonder if she discusses the tufts. I don’t think the chick’s bill is deformed; it is just an oversized chick’s bill.