SPANNISH SPARROW
The Spanish sparrow or willow sparrow (as it is also known), is closely related to the house sparrow. They often mate with house sparrows creating confusing hybrids and the juveniles and females are virtually indistinguishable in appearance from the house sparrow. The female is a buff grey overall with a brown back with dark streaks. The male has a grey belly with a black bib and chest. The belly has bold, black patterning. The head is white with a chestnut crown and black eye stripe. The back is brown with dark streaks.
You will find the Spanish sparrow living alongside of the house sparrow, although the Spanish sparrow prefers to nest in tall shrubbery or in clumps of trees. They nest in large colonies with the nest being made of straw and twigs. Each pair lay 3 to 8 eggs which hatch in 12 days, and the chicks fledge at about 14 days old. The Spanish sparrow feeds on the seeds of grains, grasses and flowering plants as well as invertebrates. The fledglings are fed on insects for the first few days before they are introduced to grains and seeds.
