White-crowned Sparrow (Zonotrichia leucophrys)
From tail-tip to beak, this perky flyer is 7 inches long and looks like
the white-throated sparrow, but the latter has a yellow spot beside its
eyes. White-crown breeds in the high country of New Mexico,
Colorado, Wyoming, Montana, and the Pacific coast; it winters in the
southern half of the United States and in northern Mexico.
This beautiful sparrow is numerous in the West, but rather rare
elsewhere, so watch for it carefully if you're in the East, for it is shy
and retiring there. But the white-crown is bolder and more
conspicuous in the Far West, often frequenting gardens, parks, and
yards. Like most sparrows, it is a seed eater by preference--it
appears readily at sheltered feeding stations. Insects comprise less
than 10 percent of its diet.