Thick-billed Longspur Similar Species Comparison
Main SpeciesThick-billed Longspur
Breeding male
Chunky, sparrowlike grassland bird. Breeding males have a black breast, gray belly, chestnut wing patch, and a gray-and-white face.
© Bryan Calk / Macaulay LibraryColorado, June 30, 2018Female
Chunky grassland bird with a stout bill. Females have a stout pink bill and chestnut wing patches that can sometimes be difficult to see. Note unstreaked whitish belly.
© Andrew Spencer / Macaulay LibraryColorado, April 20, 2012Breeding male
Song is a soft tinkling warble. Males usually sing while flying, as part of an aerial display, but also sing while perched on an elevated surface such as a rock, fence, or shrub.
© Benjamin Clock / Macaulay LibraryColorado, July 06, 2011Not all videos have sound
Male display
Male flutters upward and descends on outstretched wings and tail during aerial displays on the breeding grounds. The outstretched tail is white with a black T.
© Shawn Billerman / Macaulay LibraryWyoming, April 12, 2014Flock
Forms flocks outside of the breeding season. Note black T on the tail and black band on the breast of the males.
© Tom Johnson / Macaulay LibraryColorado, April 05, 2016Breeding male
Breeding males have a black breast band and crown and a chestnut wing patch.
© Shawn Billerman / Macaulay LibraryWyoming, April 12, 2014Immature female
Immatures have a chunky bill, a broad stripe over the eye, a smudgy brown band across the breast, and unstreaked white underparts. They don't have rufous in the wing like adults do.
© Jonah Benningfield / Macaulay LibraryCalifornia, October 10, 2017Juvenile
Juveniles look heavily mottled overall with white fringed feathers. Note stout pink bill.
© Jay McGowan / Macaulay LibraryMontana, July 26, 2017Molting male (with Horned Lark)
Slightly smaller than a Horned Lark with a stout pink bill. Note faint black breast band on this molting male.
© Brian Sullivan / Macaulay LibraryCalifornia, November 23, 2003Similar SpeciesChestnut-collared Longspur
nonbreeding
Chestnut-collared Longspurs have a smaller bill than Thick-billed Longspurs. The best way to separate them is tail pattern as seen in flight; a black triangle on Chestnut-collared and a black "T" on Thick-billed Longspurs.
© Jacob Drucker / Macaulay LibraryCalifornia, November 13, 2016Similar SpeciesLapland Longspur
Nonbreeding/immature
Nonbreeding/immature Lapland Longspurs are darker overall with a more contrasting face pattern than the rather plain face on nonbreeding/female Thick-billed Longspurs. In flight, they don't have the black "T" on the tail like Thick-billed Longspurs.
© Brian Sullivan / Macaulay LibraryNew Jersey, December 19, 2003Similar SpeciesSmith's Longspur
Nonbreeding
Nonbreeding Smith's Longspurs have buffier and more streaked bellies than nonbreeding/female Thick-billed Longspurs. They also have a smaller bill than Thick-billed Longspurs and lack the black "T" on the tail seen in flight.
© Luke Seitz / Macaulay LibraryMaine, September 25, 2011Similar SpeciesVesper Sparrow
Adult/immature
Vesper Sparrows have streaks on their sides that female/nonbreeding Thick-billed Longspurs lack.
© John Reynolds / Macaulay LibraryBritish Columbia, September 04, 2016Similar SpeciesHorned Lark
Female
Horned Larks have a thinner bill than the chunky-billed Thick-billed Longspur. Females have a yellow wash on the throat not seen on Thick-billed Longspurs.
© Bridget Spencer / Macaulay LibraryBritish Columbia, September 04, 2015Rotate Your Device to Better Compare
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Species in This Family
Longspurs and Snow Buntings(Order: Passeriformes, Family: Calcariidae)
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