Dark-eyed Junco
Junco hyemalis
Juncos practice a strict social hierarchy where 'alpha' birds dominate the best foraging spots at bird feeders.
- Scientific name
- Junco hyemalis
- Taxonomy
- Animalia › Chordata › Aves › Passeriformes › Passerellidae › Junco
- IUCN Red List status
- Least Concern
- Population trend
- stable
- Biome
- forest
- Habitat
- Coniferous and mixed-deciduous forests during breeding; open woodlands, fields, and suburban gardens during winter.
- Diet
- Primarily seeds from chickweed, buckwheat, and grasses; also consumes insects like beetles and caterpillars during summer.
- Range
- Canada, United States, Northern Mexico
- Size
- Length: 13-17 cm; Wingspan: 18-25 cm; Weight: 18-30 g
- Lifespan
- 3 to 11 years
- Active
- diurnal
- Threats
- Window strikes, predation by domestic cats, and loss of nesting habitat due to logging.
- Safe to approach?
- Harmless and delightful to observe. Maintain a respectful distance of 5-10 feet to avoid startling. If found injured, contact a local wildlife rehabilitator; otherwise, enjoy their presence at bird feeders.
The dark-eyed junco ( Junco hyemalis ) is a species of the juncos, a genus of small grayish American sparrows. This bird is common across much of temperate North America and in summer ranges far into the Arctic. It is a very variable species, much like the related fox sparrow ( Passerella iliaca ), and its systematics are still not completely untangled.
Photo: Becky Matsubara, CC-BY, via iNaturalist
Plain-text version: /species/b1d769d6-5621-4b8a-968e-74508967e2c2.md