Lapland Longspur

Lapland Longspur, breeding male (Def. Alternate); Pribilof Is., AK; July

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1. Cool Facts
2. Description
3. Similar Species
4. Sound
5. Range
6. Habitat
7. Food
8. Reproduction
9. Conservation Status
10. Other Names

A common songbird of the Arctic tundra, the Lapland Longspur winters in open fields across much of the United States and southern Canada.

Cool Facts

• Some winter flocks of Lapland Longspurs have been estimated as large as four million birds. During snowstorms, such flocks sometimes collide with lighted structures such as radio towers, and thousands can be killed in a single night.
• The Lapland Longspur breeds in the high arctic with continual daylight during the summer, and a breeding male may sing at any hour of the day. Despite the lack of a real dawn, the male tends to sing most in the early morning.

• ?Longspur? refers to the elongated claw of the hind toe.

Description

• Size: 15-16 cm (6-6 in)
• Wingspan: 22-28 cm (9-11 in)
• Weight: 23-33 g (0.81-1.16 ounces)

• Medium-sized sparrow-like bird.
• Short, thick, pointed bill.
• White outer tail feathers.
• Rufous patch in wings.
• Streaked sides.
• Smudge on breast.
• Breeding male with black face and chest, yellowish eyestripe, and rufous nape.

Sex Differences

Breeding male strikingly marked with black face and chest, and chestnut nape; female dull and striped.

Immature

Similar to adult.

Similar Species

• Horned Lark has thin bill, black face patch, black tail with white outer tail feathers.
• Pipits have thin bills.
• Chestnut-collared Longspur has black triangle on white tail; breeding male has black chest and belly and rufous nape.
• Smith's Longspur has two white outer tail feathers, distinct pale wingbars, and is buffy on chest and belly.
• McCown's Longspur has black T on white tail (tip and center black); breeding male has small black chest patch and gray belly.

Sound

Song a series of loud, squeaky, jingling notes. Calls a variety of zeeps, chips, and rattles. Alarm note a wheezy "tee-hu."

Range

Range Map

© 2004 Cornell Lab of Ornithology

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Summer Range

Breeds across Alaska and northern Canada. Also in Greenland and northern Eurasia.

Winter Range

Winters from southern Canada to southern United States, especially in Great Plains. Also in central and northern Eurasia.

Habitat

Breeds in Arctic tundra in wet meadows, grassy tussocks, and scrub; in migration and winter in plowed fields, stubble, and open grasslands.

Food

Seeds and insects.

Reproduction

Clutch Size

Condition at Hatching

Helpless.

Conservation Status

Common and widespread. No significant population trends, although some local populations have declined.

Other Names

Bruant lapon (French)
Lapland Bunting (British) (English)

Sources used to construct this page:

Hussell, D. J. T., and R. Montgomerie. 2002. Lapland Longspur (Calcarius lapponicus). In The Birds of North America, No. 656 (A. Poole and F. Gill, eds.). The Birds of North America, Inc., Philadelphia, PA.