Thick-billed Longspur

The Thick-billed Longspur is a specialized, ground-dwelling songbird of North America's high plains and shortgrass prairies. Formerly known as McCown's Longspur, this species is highly adapted to arid, short-stature grasslands and extensively disturbed habitats with sparse vegetation, such as heavily grazed rangeland or recently plowed fields. This species is incredibly adapted to open terrain, often relying on its cryptic coloration to blend into the barren prairie soil.

Identifying the Thick-billed Longspur is easiest during the breeding season, though its tail pattern remains diagnostic year-round.

Breeding Male

• Head & Face: Distinctive black crown, prominent white supercilium (eyebrow), and a grey face.
• Chest & Body: A bold, black crescent-shaped patch on the breast contrasting against a white throat and pale grey underparts.
• Wings & Back: Greyish-brown back with dark streaks, and a conspicuous chestnut or rufous patch on the shoulder (median coverts).
• Bill: Unusually thick, conical, and pinkish-grey, giving the bird its descriptive common name.

Female and Non-Breeding Birds

Females and winter males are much duller, featuring a sandy-brown, streaked overall appearance with plain, unstreaked breasts. However, they retain the characteristic heavy bill and diagnostic tail pattern.

Tail Pattern (Diagnostic)

In all plumages, the tail is white with a black center and a black terminal band, forming a striking, inverted "T" shape. This pattern is highly visible when the bird flushes or performs aerial displays.

Similar Species

• Chestnut-collared Longspur: Features a black breast and belly during breeding, and a black triangle on the tail rather than an inverted "T" pattern.
• Lapland Longspur: Has a smaller, less robust bill, rufous wings, and heavily streaked flanks.
• Horned Lark: Has a longer, slender bill and a bold black facial mask and yellow throat.

Thick-billed Longspurs are strict grassland obligates, specifically preferring habitats with minimal vertical structure.

Breeding Range and Habitat

During the spring and summer breeding season, they inhabit the northern Great Plains, ranging from southern Alberta and Saskatchewan down through Montana, Wyoming, Colorado, and the western Dakotas. They favor native shortgrass prairies, dry lake beds, and pastures grazed heavily by cattle or bison, actively avoiding areas with dense, tall grass.

Winter Range and Migration

These birds are medium-distance migrants, assembling in flocks to move southward in late autumn. They winter across the southwestern United States (predominantly in West Texas, southern New Mexico, and Arizona) and northern Mexico. Wintering habitats include barren agricultural fields, dry desert grasslands, and alkali flats.

Feeding

These longspurs forage entirely on the ground, walking or running rather than hopping. During the winter, their diet consists almost exclusively of the seeds of grasses and forbs. In the breeding season, they pivot to feeding their young and themselves on protein-rich insects, primarily grasshoppers, beetles, and moths.

Vocalization and Display

The species is renowned for the male's spectacular courtship display. The male flies upward to heights of 5 to 10 meters, then spreads his wings in a wide V-shape, floats slowly back to the ground like a parachute, and delivers a sweet, tinkling, bubbling warble. The flight call is a dry, rolling, metallic chatter described as "p-r-r-rt" or "chitik."

Nesting

Nest building is done entirely by the female. She selects a depression or excavates a shallow scrape in bare ground, often adjacent to a tuft of grass, cactus, or cow manure to provide wind protection. The nest is a simple, neat cup lined with fine grasses, rootlets, and animal hair. She typically lays a clutch of 3 to 4 pale blue-grey eggs, which are incubated for about 12 days.