When do juncos fly north

Female: typically browner with more indistinct markings. Juvenile: heavily streaked, often with a trace of adult pattern. The groups have at times been considered separate species. It differs from the more widespread, migratory, northerly breeding caniceps in having an even paler throat and a larger, bicolored bill that is black above and bluish below. Intergrades between some subspecies are frequent.

Call: sharp dit. Flight note: a rapid twittering. Song: a musical trill on 1 pitch; often heard in winter. Breeds south to northern Baja California; winters south to northern Mexico. Breeding: breeds in coniferous or mixed woodlands. Winter: found in a wide variety of habitats, the dark-eyed junco tends to avoid areas of denser brush; it especially favors feeders, parks, and open forest without an understory.

Migration: withdraws from wintering areas during April, typically early—mid-April. Fall arrivals first appear in late September, peaking in late October. Vagrant: southern Florida and Europe. Juncos migrate at night at very low altitudes and are susceptible to collisions with communication towers and other structures.

Each winter flock of juncos has a dominance hierarchy with adult males at the top, then juvenile males, adult females and young females at the bottom. You can often observe individuals challenging the status of others with aggressive displays of lunges and tail flicking.

While almost all Slate-colored Juncos in the Eastern portion of North America migrate, a population of juncos in the Appalachian Mountains is residential, remaining in the same area year-round.

While the southward migration of Slate-colored Juncos is complete by early December, there is some evidence that indicates that harsh winter weather may spur some Juncos to move further south at anytime during the winter.

Juncos have over 30 percent more feathers by weight in the winter than they do in summer. Juncos prefer to roost in evergreens at night but will also use tall grasses and brush piles. The role of migration and winter mortality in the life history of a temperate-zone migrant, the Dark-eyed Junco, as determined from demographic analyses of winter populations. Nolan, V. Ketterson, D. Cristol, C.

Rogers, E. Clotfelter, R. Titus, S. Schoech, and E. Dark-eyed Junco Junco hyemalis. Poole and F. Gill, Eds. Sauer, J. Hines, and J. National Audubon Society. Smith, K. Food, predation, and reproductive ecology of the Dark-eyed Junco in northern Utah. Skip to main content. Dark-eyed Junco. Junco hyemalis. This is an in-depth boreal species profile. What is this? East of the plains the Juncos are all gray and white, but in the West they come in various color patterns, with reddish-brown on the back or sides or both; some of these were once regarded as different species.

The forms have separate ranges in summer, but in winter several types may occur in the same flock in parts of the West. Photo gallery. Feeding Behavior Forages mostly while hopping and running on the ground. Eggs , rarely 6. Young Both parents feed the nestlings. Diet Mostly seeds and insects. Nesting Male sings from high perch to defend nesting territory.

Climate threats facing the Dark-eyed Junco Choose a temperature scenario below to see which threats will affect this species as warming increases. More News. Explore Similar Birds. The Bird Guide Adopt a Bird. American Dipper Latin: Cinclus mexicanus. Black Phoebe Latin: Sayornis nigricans.

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