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Black-throated Sparrow Sings in the Desert
A handsome bird with a sophisticated song.
© Mick Thompson
Sparrows are iconic desert denizens of the southwestern U.S. and northern Mexico. They thrive in open arid habitats, with evenly spaced shrubs, trees, and cacti. Historically, these native ecosystems were naturally maintained with frequent, low-intensity fires. But decades of drought and fire suppression have set the stage for hotter, more destructive blazes. We can protect Black-throated Sparrows and their vibrant habitats by preventing overgrazing on rangelands, combating the spread of invasive plants, and restoring a sustainable fire regime to the landscape.
BirdNote®
Black-throated Sparrows Sing in the Desert
Adapted from a script by Bob Sundstrom
This is BirdNote.
[Black-throated Sparrow song + SW desert ambi]
Singing from atop a cactus, a handsome bird greets the new day.
[Black-throated Sparrow song]
It’s a Black-throated Sparrow, an iconic desert denizen of the southwestern U.S. and northern Mexico. A patch of pure black accents their throats and white stripes boldly mark their dark faces.
[Black-throated Sparrow song]
Black-throated Sparrows thrive in open arid habitats, with evenly spaced shrubs, trees, and cacti. These bushy plants provide the perfect perch for the male’s serenade and shelter for the female to build her cup-shaped nest. The sparrows can also be found on the ground, foraging for seeds and insects.
Historically, these native ecosystems were naturally maintained with frequent, low-intensity fires. But decades of drought and fire suppression have set the stage for hotter, more destructive blazes.
[Black-throated Sparrow song]
We can protect this vibrant desert habitat by preventing overgrazing on rangelands, combating the spread of invasive plants, and restoring a sustainable fire regime to the landscape. Each of these measures would help sustain the Black-throated Sparrow’s gentle song in the desert Southwest.
[Black-throated Sparrow song]
For BirdNote, I’m Michael Stein.
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Senior Producer: Mark Bramhill
Producer: Sam Johnson
Managing Producer: Jazzi Johnson
Managing Producer: Ariana Remmel
Content Director: Jonese Franklin
Bird sounds provided by The Macaulay Library of Natural Sounds at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, New York. Western Meadowlark ML556671411 recorded by Thomas Bancroft.
BirdNote’s theme was composed and played by Nancy Rumbel and John Kessler.
© 2012 BirdNote March 2012 & August 2026
Narrator: Michael Stein
ID# SotB-BTSP-01b-2026-08-13 SotB-BTSP-01b
Reference:
https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Black-throated_Sparrow/overview
http://birdsoftheworld.org/bow/species/bktspa/cur/introduction
Bob Sundstrom
Writer
Michael Stein
NarratorSights & Sounds
