Size:

Length: 5.5 in

ID:

Male: Small bird with gray underparts, nape, cheeks and rump; chestnut cap; black eyeline with white eyebrow; upperparts light brown with streaking of brown and black; 2 white wing bars; long, slim, forked tail; bill black and conical; pale feet anisodactylous (three toes point forward and one toe points backward) 
Female: Same as male
Juvenile: Drabber than adult; cap and breast are streaked

Habitat:

Gardens, lawns, forest edges, orchards and farmyards

Diet:

Weed seeds gleaned from ground and bushes (especially likes crabgrass, ragweed, dandelion and clover); insects, caterpillars and spiders; eats seeds at and under feeders

Family Behavior:

Mating Habits: Monogamous (5% of male polygynous--mating simultaneously with more than one female); solitary nester or in pairs; 2 broods per year

Local Breeding Period: Late May to early June
Nests:  Cup shaped and made of woven weeds and grass, lined with hair; built by female; usually placed in a conifer tree within 6 feet of the ground
Eggs:  2-5 pale bluish green with dark brown, black  and purple markings dotted and scrawled mostly at larger end; incubated 11-14 days by female (male feeds female)
Nestlings: Born altricial (helpless, naked, eyes closed) and stay in nest 8-12 days; both parents feed

Social Activities:

Tame around humans; joins mixed-species foraging flocks during winter; migrates at night in family groups of  20-50 birds

Range:

Most of Canada and continental US; summers in southern US, Mexico and Central America

Vocalization:

Named for rapid trill series of dry chip-chip-chip; each male sings only one of 30 different songs; sings from high tree perch during day and sometimes at night