Juncos

Technically, Juncos are members of the Sparrow family; and they do share some Sparrow characteristics. They’re one of the New England winter birds I was accustomed to seeing as a child, sometimes feeding from the platform feeder, but most commonly, gleaning seeds on the ground. The official name for the local variety in Maine is Dark-Eyed Junco (Junco hyemalis). But if you look at older bird guides or compare more modern field guides, you’ll note that there’s a fair amount of variation in coloration. As a child, I remember the New England form being called a Slate-colored Junco. They were Winter birds, arrive with the first snowfall, and leaving before the Crocus bloomed.

Here in Maine, they still favor the ground, but they also use the tube-feeders, enjoying both finch mix and black-oil sunflower. They still have the definitely pink feet and beaks I remember as a child. They spent a fair amount of time last week during the storm sheltering in the shrubbery, and yesterday, I took some pictures of one sitting in the Rhododendron:

The Juncos in Washington and California look quite different from Maine Juncos:

Dark-eyed Junco; Puget Sound, WA

Older bird guides sometimes call this variety with its distinct darker “hood” and rusty brown on the top an “Oregon Junco.” Some individuals are much more strikingly colored, with a very dark head and a very brown body.