English Sparrows feeding on my Mustard Greens

English Sparrows feeding on my Mustard Greens.

6 July 2002

by James K. Sayre.

Several of the local English Sparrows, apparently tired of the easy pickins' on the feeding station, have opted to tackle a more natural food source: the ripening seed pods of the Mustard Greens growing in my backyard garden.

Maybe English Sparrows feel the same sort of angst of modern Americans, who tire of finding and buying their meat in prepackaged Styrofoam and cellophane wrapped containers at the grocery store and decide to go hunting in the local fields and woods for game animals or game birds.

The English Sparrow:

The English Sparrow or House Sparrow (Passer domesticus) is one of the most widely distributed birds in North America. It is small active tough stout-billed brownish bird with bits of chestnut, gray, black and white thrown in for some contrast on the male. It does not migrate: it sets up permanent housekeeping wherever it finds itself. This permanent residency covers most of the humanly occupied North American continent: across Canada from Newfoundland to British Columbia, over the lower 48 states and down the Baja peninsula in Mexico. In the southeast, it ranges from the Florida Keys around the Gulf of Mexico, south into eastern Mexico down into Guatemala in Central America. It has also settled in the Hawai'ian Islands. This range in North America covers the USDA hardiness zones from 2 to11 in North America, with average low temperatures ranging from -50 F to +40 F. Quite a testament to this tough little bird.

Its calls and songs are limited to a few "cheeps" and "chirps," repeated many times. These and a few other short notes are used in their interminable chats and social squabbles. It takes only a few English Sparrows sitting in a shrub or a tree to make alot of noise.

This bird is intelligent, adaptable and is quick to seize on new feeding and nesting opportunities. Their nests are often located in, on, around or near houses, apartment buildings, factories and offices. Their nests consist of woven bits of grass, leaves, straw, twigs, feathers, along with small pieces of fabric and other materials. In Europe, many English Sparrow nests are located in trees, and they are usually large, elaborate and round in shape (and probably gave rise to the family name of Weaver-finches).

In North America, most of the English Sparrow nests are constructed on or within human structures and thus do not need to be so massive or elaborate to protect the young from the hostile weather elements, such as rain, wind, sleet, snow and cold, as when they were built in a more exposed location in a tree.

After mating and nest building, which may commence in late winter to early spring, the female lays several small speckled white eggs in the nest. After inoculation, the young hatch out and are soon demanding food. After about three weeks, the young birds develop their flight feathers and soon join their parents in the daily search for food.

In the colder climates, outside of the nesting season, English Sparrows gather nightly in large roosts. This behavior is not as pronounced in warmer areas such as coastal California. Here, the flocks are usually smaller in size.

English Sparrows mostly feed on seeds and grains, but do eat a small amount of insects including beetles, grasshoppers, caterpillars, moths, ants, beea and others.

The English Sparrow colonizes North America:

About one hundred and fifty years ago, a flock of English Sparrows was imported from England and then released in Central Park in New York City. The birds thrived in their new environment, reproduced and gradually spread around the northeast, the midwest and the south. This was the time of the horse and the railroad. English Sparrows followed both the horse and the iron horse across the North American continent. In about twenty years, the English Sparrow had colonized as far west as the Rocky Mountains. Later it made it to the west coast and colonized from Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada south into Baja and mainland Mexico down into Guatemala in Central America.

It has followed man in its settlement of North America. Wherever there is a city, town or settlement, a few English Sparrows can usually be found, living alongside people. Interestingly, this bird is not found out in wilderness areas that do not have permanent human habitation with accompanying structures.

Mustard Greens:

Mustard Greens (Brassica juncea var. integrifolia) are a cultivated variety of Brown Mustard, Brassica juncea. They are both members of the Mustard family of plants, which is formally referred to as

Brassicaceae or Cruciferae. The etymology of mustard greens is as follows: mustard Middle English mustarde, condiment, later, the plant, Old French moustarde, moust, "must," Latin mustum, must, "new wine + green Middle English grene, Old English grene, compare: Old Frisian grene, German grün, Dutch groen + -s, so named because originally mustard paste was prepared by mixing grape juice with mustard powder; the greens term refers to the fact that this cultivated variety is designed to yield edible green leaves and the resulting mustard seeds are not important.

The Mustard Green is an annual plant that grows to about four feet high. It has rough lobed or toothed leaves and produces clusters (terminal racemes) of yellow blossoms in the spring and summer, which are followed by narrow green pods which hold small round dark brown seeds. Its leaves, called Mustard Greens, have been traditionally used as a cooked vegetable in Europe, Asia, the Mediterranean area and North America. Also, there is traditional American folk use of seeds in an external plaster as a remedy for bronchitis. Native to Europe, Asia and the Mediterranean area. Cultivated as a food crop in North America. Several cultivars exist. This annual is cultivated in frost-free times in temperate North America.

Conclusion:

So if you are tired of watching English Sparrows hanging out around your bird feeder and yearn to see them feed in a more natural habitat, then plant some Mustard Greens in your yard. After the plants have flowered, they will soon set seed and produce narrow green seed-holding pods. Maybe the Sparrows and other seed-eaters just enjoy the challenge of clambering around on the swaying stems of the Mustard Greens and cracking open the pods to get at the fresh seeds.

Further information on the English Sparrow: etymology of word, sparrow, and additional folknames.

]Etymology: sparrow Middle English sparowe, sparwa, sparewe, sparwe, Old English spearwa, sparrow, compare: Middle High German sparwe, Old High German sparo, German sperling, Gothic sparwa, Old Norse spörr, Danish spurv, spurre, Frisian sparreg].

Folknames: Bull Sparrow, Domestic Sparrow, European House Sparrow, Gamin, Glaiseun, Gorrion, Gorrion Domestico, Gorrion Ingles, Grey Bird, Hedge Sparrow, Hoodlum, House Bird, House Sparrow, Manu Liilii, Moineau, Moineau Anglais, Moineau Pierrot, Pinson Anglais, Sparrow, Town Sparrow and Tramp.

Sample entries from the author's book, North American Bird Folknames and Names, may be viewed at www.bottlebrushpress.com.

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Web page last updated on 7 May 2003.