The Clay-colored Sparrow is well monitored by the Breeding Bird Survey (BBS) in Canada, which indicates a 40% decrease in abundance since about 1970. That decrease has continued through recent times (2006-2016), though at a smaller magnitude. At the regional level, the decrease in abundance is strongest in the Boreal Taiga Plains and Boreal Hardwood Transition Bird Conservation Regions (BCR), while populations in the Lower Great Lakes/St. Lawrence Plain BCR and in British Columbia appear to be increasing. The population in the Prairie Potholes BCR, which hosts the bulk of the population, is stable. All BCRs where the species is found and for which there are reasonably reliable information are displayed below. Since the mid-1990s, the Clay-colored Sparrow has been below the lowest acceptable level relative to its national population goal (see Canada graph below).
Additional information on: Breeding Bird Survey (BBS) - Canadian analysis
