Fox Sparrow
(Passerella iliaca)

Overview

Summary

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The Fox Sparrow is an abundant and widespread species across the northern woodlands and western forests of Canada. The Breeding Bird Survey suggests that the population has undergone a moderate increase relative to 1970, though the survey provides limited coverage in the northernmost portion of the species' range. Currently, there are no identified significant threats or major conservation concerns for the species. This species has been identified as a priority for conservation and/or stewardship in one or more Bird Conservation Region Strategies in Canada.

Designations

Population status

Population estimate

Distribution maps

• North American Breeding Bird Survey (BBS): Relative Abundance and Breeding Distribution (1970-2016)
• Canadian Atlas of Bird Banding Maps
• BirdLife International / NatureServe
• Birds of North America Online

Migration strategy, occurrence

Responsibility for conservation

General nesting period in Canada

Conservation and management

The species appears to be adaptable to current land-use practices (Weckstein et al. 2002). With as many as 18 subspecies, which are usually lumped into 4 major group types (Weckstein et al. 2002), each occupying different habitat types, monitoring of the Fox Sparrow is complex. However there is little indication that any of the groups are declining significantly.

Bird conservation region strategies

Environment and Climate Change Canada and partners have developed Bird Conservation Region Strategies in each of Canada’s Bird Conservation Regions (BCRs). In these strategies, selected species are identified as priorities for one or more of the following reasons:

• conservation concerns (i.e., species vulnerable due to population size, distribution, population trend, abundance, or threats)
• stewardship responsibilities (i.e., species that typify the regional avifauna or have a large proportion of their range or population in the sub-region)
• management concerns (i.e., species that require ongoing management because of their socio-economic importance as game species, or because of their impacts on other species or habitats)
• other concerns (i.e., species deemed a priority by regional experts for other reasons than those listed above or because they are listed as species at risk or concern at the provincial level)

Select any of the sub-regions below to view the BCR strategy for additional details.

References

• Weckstein, J.D., D.E. Kroodsma and R.C. Faucett. 2002. Fox Sparrow (Passerella iliaca), The Birds of North America Online (A. Poole, Ed.). Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, New York. Weckstein, J.D., D.E. Kroodsma and R.C. Faucett. 2002. Fox Sparrow (Passerella iliaca), The Birds of North America Online (A. Poole, Ed.). Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, New York. (Link)