Geographic Range
Anthus spragueii
breeds in the northern prairies of the Great Plains, it’s northern limit is Saskatchewan,
with it’s western limit near the Rocky Mountains.
Anthus spragueii
can also be found in the Dakotas, western Minnesota, Montana, and parts of British
Columbia.
Anthus spragueii
winters in Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Mississippi, Louisiana,
and areas in Northern Mexico. It has also been observed in Michigan, western Ontario,
Ohio, and Massachusetts.
Habitat
Sprague's pipits prefer grassland with few shrubs and high visibility. They prefer
native grasses like wheatgrass, June grass, blue grama, Canby blue, green needle grass,
smooth brome, and crested wheat.
- Habitat Regions
- temperate
- terrestrial
- Terrestrial Biomes
- savanna or grassland
- Other Habitat Features
- agricultural
Physical Description
Lacking some of the brighter colors found in other pipits, Sprague's pipits are well
camouflaged in prairie grasses. The plumage is a tan color highlighted by streaks
of white and black, with white outer tail feathers. Sprague's pipits have pinkish
yellow legs, dark eyes, and a small cream colored beak. Females show an increase in
mass during the mating season. Young are covered in gray down upon hatching and have
transparent skin.
- Other Physical Features
- endothermic
- homoiothermic
- bilateral symmetry
- Sexual Dimorphism
- sexes alike
Reproduction
Little is known about the mating systems of
Anthus spragueii
. During mating season Sprague's pipits are monogamous. Other pipits are known to
perform aerial displays to attract mates.
- Mating System
- monogamous
In Saskatchewan Sprague's pipits take 3 to 4 months to raise a clutch. The season
begins the second week of May and extends into July. Mates produce an average of 1.5
clutches per year with a clutch consisting of roughly 4.5 eggs. Nests are built on
the ground in grassland near dense grass. Females collect dried grass 5 to 15 cm in
length to weave into a nest. Sometimes females will build a canopy out of grass,
creating a dome over the nest. The nest interior is approximately 7.6 cm in diameter,
3.8 cm in depth, with a 5.1 cm entrance hole. New nests are built for every brood.
The incubation period is 13 to 14 days. There is little information about the age
of sexual maturity in Sprague's pipits.
- Key Reproductive Features
- iteroparous
- seasonal breeding
- gonochoric/gonochoristic/dioecious (sexes separate)
- sexual
- oviparous
Females incubate the eggs over a 13 to 14 day period. During the pre-fledgling period
(which lasts 10 to 11 days) Females provide all care. It has been suggested that
males may take over care after young leave the nest.
- Parental Investment
- altricial
-
pre-fertilization
- provisioning
-
protecting
- female
-
pre-hatching/birth
-
provisioning
- female
-
protecting
- female
-
provisioning
-
pre-weaning/fledging
-
provisioning
- female
-
protecting
- female
-
provisioning
-
pre-independence
-
provisioning
- male
-
protecting
- male
-
provisioning
Lifespan/Longevity
Behavior
Sprague's pipits walk or run while foraging or avoiding predators. Males establish
and defend territories with aerial displays. They circle over the territory, singing
briefly then quickly flapping their wings. At the end of this show they dive low to
the ground then pull up to land. Sprague's pipits are solitary during migration and
winter, but form flocks during mating season. Sprague's pipits will reach a rear leg
above the wing to scratch the head and perform anting and dusting as self maintenance.
Home Range
Sprague's pipits establish territories during the breeding season. Males establish
their territory through an aerial display in which they circle over the territory.
Communication and Perception
Sprague's pipits generally only make calls that are short "squicks." Only males are
known to sing, and only during their aerial display. Male songs are high pitched and
last 2 to 3 seconds. Nestlings can make noises at age 10 to 11 days.
Food Habits
Sprague's pipits eat mostly
arthropods
during breeding season, and some seeds too. They forage in grasses on their own during
the daytime. They eat spurge seeds, grasshoppers, crickets, false cinch bugs, weevils,
stink bugs, ants, leaf beetles, beetles, and caterpillars. Females bring small invertebrates
to the young to eat.
- Primary Diet
- omnivore
- Animal Foods
- insects
- Plant Foods
- seeds, grains, and nuts
Predation
Little is known about predators of Sprague's pipits, but carnivorous mammals, such
as weasels, and snakes are suspected as predators of eggs and nestlings. Raptors may
take fledglings and adults.
- Anti-predator Adaptations
- cryptic
Ecosystem Roles
Broods of Sprague's pipits are parasitized by brown-headed cowbirds, but less so than
other prairie-dwelling birds. They are also parasitized by the feather mites
Proctophyllodes anthi
and
P. polyxenus
. Sprague's pipits forages for insects and also feed on seeds.
Economic Importance for Humans: Positive
Sprague's pipits have no known economic importance to humans, aside from their role
as parts of healthy, prairie ecosystems.
Economic Importance for Humans: Negative
Conservation Status
Sprague's pipits are considered vulnerable because of a rapid population decline of
about 32% that has been documented since the 1970's. The major threats to this species
are considered habitat loss and degradation resulting from land conversion to agriculture.
Other Comments
According to The Birds of North America, Sprague's pipits are "one of the least-known
birds in North America." Named after Isaac Sprague, who discovered these birds near
Fort Union, N.D. in June of 1943.
Additional Links
Contributors
Tanya Dewey (editor), Animal Diversity Web.
Richard Javier (author), Kalamazoo College, Ann Fraser (editor, instructor), Kalamazoo College.
- Nearctic
-
living in the Nearctic biogeographic province, the northern part of the New World. This includes Greenland, the Canadian Arctic islands, and all of the North American as far south as the highlands of central Mexico.
- native range
-
the area in which the animal is naturally found, the region in which it is endemic.
- temperate
-
that region of the Earth between 23.5 degrees North and 60 degrees North (between the Tropic of Cancer and the Arctic Circle) and between 23.5 degrees South and 60 degrees South (between the Tropic of Capricorn and the Antarctic Circle).
- terrestrial
-
Living on the ground.
- tropical savanna and grassland
-
A terrestrial biome. Savannas are grasslands with scattered individual trees that do not form a closed canopy. Extensive savannas are found in parts of subtropical and tropical Africa and South America, and in Australia.
- savanna
-
A grassland with scattered trees or scattered clumps of trees, a type of community intermediate between grassland and forest. See also Tropical savanna and grassland biome.
- temperate grassland
-
A terrestrial biome found in temperate latitudes (>23.5° N or S latitude). Vegetation is made up mostly of grasses, the height and species diversity of which depend largely on the amount of moisture available. Fire and grazing are important in the long-term maintenance of grasslands.
- agricultural
-
living in landscapes dominated by human agriculture.
- endothermic
-
animals that use metabolically generated heat to regulate body temperature independently of ambient temperature. Endothermy is a synapomorphy of the Mammalia, although it may have arisen in a (now extinct) synapsid ancestor; the fossil record does not distinguish these possibilities. Convergent in birds.
- bilateral symmetry
-
having body symmetry such that the animal can be divided in one plane into two mirror-image halves. Animals with bilateral symmetry have dorsal and ventral sides, as well as anterior and posterior ends. Synapomorphy of the Bilateria.
- monogamous
-
Having one mate at a time.
- iteroparous
-
offspring are produced in more than one group (litters, clutches, etc.) and across multiple seasons (or other periods hospitable to reproduction). Iteroparous animals must, by definition, survive over multiple seasons (or periodic condition changes).
- seasonal breeding
-
breeding is confined to a particular season
- sexual
-
reproduction that includes combining the genetic contribution of two individuals, a male and a female
- oviparous
-
reproduction in which eggs are released by the female; development of offspring occurs outside the mother's body.
- altricial
-
young are born in a relatively underdeveloped state; they are unable to feed or care for themselves or locomote independently for a period of time after birth/hatching. In birds, naked and helpless after hatching.
- diurnal
-
- active during the day, 2. lasting for one day.
- motile
-
having the capacity to move from one place to another.
- migratory
-
makes seasonal movements between breeding and wintering grounds
- solitary
-
lives alone
- territorial
-
defends an area within the home range, occupied by a single animals or group of animals of the same species and held through overt defense, display, or advertisement
- social
-
associates with others of its species; forms social groups.
- visual
-
uses sight to communicate
- acoustic
-
uses sound to communicate
- cryptic
-
having markings, coloration, shapes, or other features that cause an animal to be camouflaged in its natural environment; being difficult to see or otherwise detect.
- omnivore
-
an animal that mainly eats all kinds of things, including plants and animals
- visual
-
uses sight to communicate
- tactile
-
uses touch to communicate
- acoustic
-
uses sound to communicate
- chemical
-
uses smells or other chemicals to communicate
References
Hutchins, M., J. Jackson, W. Bock, D. Olendord. 2002. Grzimek's Animal Life Encyclopedia, 2nd edition . Farmington Hills, MI: Gale Group.
IUCN, 2007. "Anthus spragueii" (On-line). The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Accessed May 18, 2007 at http://www.iucnredlist.org/search/details.php/40400/summ .
Robbins, M., B. Dale. 1999. The Birds of North America . Philadelphia, PA: The Birds of North America, Inc..
Arizona Game and Fish Dept. Anthus spragueii . ABPBM02060. Pheonix, AZ: Unpublished abstract compiled and edited by the Heritage Data Management System. 2001.