''Zonotrichia'' is a genus of five extant

American sparrow New World sparrows are a group of mainly New World passerine birds, forming the family Passerellidae. They are seed-eating birds with conical bills, brown or gray in color, and many species have distinctive head patterns. Although they share t ...

s of the family Passerellidae. Four of the species are

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Car ...

n, but the

rufous-collared sparrow The rufous-collared sparrow or Andean sparrow (''Zonotrichia capensis'') is an American sparrow found in a wide range of habitats, often near humans, from the extreme south-east of Mexico to Tierra del Fuego, and the island of Hispaniola (split ...

breeds in highlands from the extreme southeast of Mexico to Tierra del Fuego, and on

Hispaniola Hispaniola (, also ; es, La Española; Latin and french: Hispaniola; ht, Ispayola; tnq, Ayiti or Quisqueya) is an island in the Caribbean that is part of the Greater Antilles. Hispaniola is the most populous island in the West Indies, and th ...

Etymology

The genus name ''Zonotrichia'' is from Ancient Greek (, ) and (, ).

Species

The species in the genus ''Zonotrichia'' are: These birds have brown backs streaked with black, and distinctive head markings. Their cup nests, built by the female, are of plant material lined with fine grasses and constructed on the ground, low in a tree or bush, or in a niche in a wall. The female lays brown-blotched greenish-blue or greenish white eggs, which she incubates for 12–14 days. The male helps in feeding the chicks. ''Zonotrichia'' sparrows feed on the ground on

seeds A seed is an embryonic plant enclosed in a protective outer covering, along with a food reserve. The formation of the seed is a part of the process of reproduction in seed plants, the spermatophytes, including the gymnosperm and angiosperm pl ...

, fallen grain, insects and spiders.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q914721 Bird genera American sparrows Taxa named by William John Swainson