Sparrows

Sparrows are a group of small sized birds that are found in woodlands and across farmlands all around the world. They are spread throughout almost every continent.

They can be easily identified by their smoothly rounded heads. Sparrows range in size from the Chestnut sparrow found in Africa, which is just over 4 inches in height, to the Parrot-billed sparrow (also found in Africa) that grows to more than 7 inches tall.

Sparrows are omnivorous birds that mainly eat seeds and substitute their diet with berries, fruits and small insects. Some sparrow species have also adapted to life in the city where little birds are known to eat almost anything that they can find.

Due to their small size, sparrows are prey to numerous predators within their native environments all around the world. Cats, dogs, snakes, foxes and birds of prey are just a handful of the natural predators of the sparrow in the wild.

Sparrows breed when the weather begins to warm in the spring, when female sparrows make nests in trees and rafters in which to lay their eggs (an average of 4-5 are laid per clutch). The female sparrow incubates her eggs which hatch in only a couple of weeks, when the vulnerable chicks are cared for until they are strong enough to leave the nest.

Today, there is little concern over the sparrow populations and they are not considered in any way endangered.

Sparrows tend to congregate in large numbers in places that people also congregate in large numbers: stadiums, amusement parks, fast food parking lots, airports, etc. They are looking for food that is easily available around garbage containers and just loose on the ground. Their droppings can be so numerous that it becomes a health hazard. Airports are a particular problem as groups of sparrows can be sucked into engine intakes causing engine damage and airplane failure and subsequent crash.