Melospiza lincolnii
Silhouette: Jason Dilworth · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~50% in a week ~80%
Lincoln's sparrow (Melospiza lincolnii) is a small sparrow native to North America. It is a less common passerine bird that often stays hidden under thick ground cover, but can be distinguished by its sweet, wrenlike song. Lincoln's sparrow is one of three species in the genus Melospiza which also includes the song sparrow (M. melodia) and the swamp sparrow (M. georgiana). It lives in well-covered brushy habitats, often near water. This bird is poorly documented because of its secretive nature and breeding habits solely in boreal regions.
Adults have dark-streaked olive-brown upperparts and a light brown breast with fine streaks, a white belly, and a white throat. They have a brown cap with a grey stripe in the middle, olive-brown wings, and a narrow tail. Their face is grey with brown cheeks, a buffy mustache, and a brown line through the eye with a narrow eye ring. Males and females are alike in plumage. They are somewhat similar in appearance to the song sparrow although smaller and trimmer with finer breast streaks.
Juveniles strongly resemble juvenile swamp sparrows with a streaky chest and not yet buffy breast, but Lincoln's sparrows rarely have a unicolored... Wikipedia →
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | León | 🇲🇽 México | |
| 2 | Mexico City | 🇲🇽 México | |
| 3 | Austin | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 4 | San Antonio | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 5 | Puebla | 🇲🇽 México | |
| 6 | Calgary | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 7 | Sacramento | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 8 | Monterrey | 🇲🇽 México | |
| 9 | Mesa | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 10 | Guadalajara | 🇲🇽 México |
| # | Zoo / Centre | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ralph Perkins II Wildlife Center and Woods Garden | 🇺🇸 United States |
Possible
About 20% of wildlife watchers report a Lincoln's Sparrow sighting in Banff National Park on a given day, based on 567 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 28th most-seen of the 191 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 50%, and over a week to about 80%, if each day is a fresh chance.
May to July
In those months about 30% of wildlife watchers report a Lincoln's Sparrow in Banff National Park on a given day, against under 5% in January, March and October, the lowest months.
Between 8 and 11 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Lincoln's Sparrow sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
6th of 48
Of the 48 parks where we can rate Lincoln's Sparrow sightings, Banff National Park ranks 6th at about 20%. The best odds are in Gros Morne National Park (Canada, about 50%), Reserva de la Biosfera Mariposa Monarca (Mexico, about 30%) and Jasper National Park (Canada, about 30%). All parks ranked.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Lincoln's Sparrow is recorded against all the birds logged in Banff National Park (567 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
