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Birds of Zihuatanejo

CLASS AVES

-Animals (Kingdom Animalia)

-Chordates (Phylum Chordata)

-Vertebrates (Subphylum Vertebrata)

-Birds (Class Aves)

-Perching Birds (Order Passeriformes)

-New World Sparrows (Family Passerellidae)

-Olive Sparrows and Allies (Genus Arremonops)

-Olive Sparrow (Arremonops rufivirgatus)


This is a sparrow of the dense thorn scrub, the Olive Sparrow hops on the ground, never straying far from cover. Feeds mainly on the ground, under dense thickets or near their edges. Often forages scratching with its feet among the leaf-litter. Its diet is mainly insects (including caterpillars) and the seeds of wild plants. It 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.

Olive Sparrow

Arremonops rufivirgatus

Diet

  • Primarily insects, including beetles, ants, caterpillars, grasshoppers, spiders, and other small invertebrates.

  • Also eats seeds, berries, and small fruits, particularly outside the breeding season.

  • Forages mainly on or near the ground by scratching through leaf litter and low vegetation.

Range

  • Found from southern Texas south along the Gulf Coast and the Pacific slope of Mexico to Oaxaca.

  • Common throughout western Mexico, including the Zihuatanejo region.

  • Inhabits tropical dry forests, thorn scrub, dense brush, woodland edges, riparian thickets, and overgrown agricultural areas.

  • A year-round resident throughout its range.

Male / Female

  • Male: Olive-green upperparts, gray face and underparts, distinctive rufous crown stripes, and a black line through the eye. Slightly larger and often more brightly coloured than the female.

  • Female: Very similar to the male but generally duller, with slightly less vivid rufous crown stripes.

  • Sexes are difficult to distinguish in the field, and are most reliably separated by subtle plumage differences or breeding behaviour.

Size

  • Length: 14–16 cm (5.5–6.3 in)

  • Wingspan: 20–23 cm (7.9–9.1 in)

  • Weight: 23–35 g

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