Rufous-collared Sparrow

Zonotrichia capensis

eBird describes the Rufous-collared Sparrow like this:  Handsomely patterned sparrow from highlands of Chiapas south to temperate South America. Occurs in open and semiopen habitats such as villages, towns, and farmland with hedges and brushy thickets. Feeds on the ground and in bushes, at times in flocks. Note the peaked crown, bold black-and-gray head pattern (though black much reduced in southern populations), bright rusty collar, and black chest patch. Juvenile has ghosting of adult pattern and breast is streaked dusky.

The Birds of the World website introduces this bird with this descriptive information:  The Rufous-collard Sparrow is a ubiquitous resident of lowland and montane scrub from Mexico south to Tierra del Fuego.  Rufous-collared Sparrows have a gray head with two broad black crown stripes and a blackish line through the eye, prominent rufous collar, rufescent upperparts streaked black and white underparts with black patches on either side of the chest.  The sparrows are very tolerant to human presence, and are a common sight in settlements across South America.  Rufous-collard Sparrows are often encountered hopping on open ground as they forage for seeds and insects or singing from a  prominent perch on a shrub or rock.

I met my first Rufous-collared Sparrow at Miriam’s Cafe in the Savegre Valley of Costa Rica on the early evening of February 7, 2023.  Several of these colorful little birds visited the grounds below the deck and feeders and I got several good looks and photos.