Odd Winter Visitor - Chipping Sparrow
I have taken quite a bit of joy from my bird feeders, when I get to stay home and observe them. I plan to start a series of posts with pictures of some of the visitors, as I happen to catch them on film.
Two tiny sparrows have been hanging out at our feeder through the fall and winter. I do not recall ever seeing Chipping Sparrows this late (or early) in the year. Since I knew Chipping Sparrows don't hang around, I kept trying to make them into other sparrows. Unless the angle is right, you cannot see the red cap. The strong, dark eyeline separates them from our other Spizellas. According to the map in my Sibley, the closest wintering grounds is TN. 
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There are occasional reports of Chipping Sparrows in winter in South Bend, but it's usually just one bird. Christmas Bird Counts this year are showing that a lot of birds that are normally gone in winter stayed around. There was a Common yellowthroat on the Elkhart CBC. I saw recent reports of Ovenbird and American Redstart in Ohio. We had a Gray Catbird at our feeder just before Christmas. That coupled with the invasion of Snowy Owls from the north makes this a strange year.
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