Fauna Flora Photography

Dark-eyed Junco Junco hyemalis

Although there are many different subspecies with considerable variety in coloring, the one I spot near Montreal comes very close to the original description as a grey bird with white belly. A sparrow appearing in small flocks picking up food from the ground.

Taxonomy

Aves > Passeriformes > Passerellidae

Names in different Languages

GermanWinterammer
EnglishDark-eyed Junco
FrenchJunco ardoisé
SpanishJunco ojioscuro

How to Identify

Males have a dark grey head, grey body and white belly. The greyish color, the fact that the species appears usually in a flock and that it has the preference to feed on the ground, below the feeding station, provides me a strong hint. Further, being lucky to watch the bird close, the dark, almost black eyes confirms the identification.

Where When to Spot

I watched them on several occasions in Park Mont Royal during late autumn before and after first snowfall. The observation done in Summer was in Newfoundland near the airport.

SpringSummerFallWinter
Airport Heights Park 0 1 0 0
Boisé Des Douze 1 0 0 0
Jardin Botanique de Montréal 1 0 0 1
Parc Angrignon 3 0 0 1
Parc Mont-Royal 1 0 2 0
Parc Nature Pointe aux Prairies 2 0 0 0
Parc de la Frayère 1 0 0 0
Saguenay St. Lawrence Marine Park 0 1 0 0
  9 2 2 2

Number of times a species has been observed, identified, and recorded. A species is reported only once per visit to a park.

Photos of Dark-eyed Junco


Last updated on 2023-01-15. Written and regularly updated by Karl-Heinz Müller, Dipl. Natw. ETH, Biology. With 10 years of experience in wildlife photography, Karl-Heinz shares first-hand, on-site collected observations, photos and videos from his frequent visits to parks in the Montreal area.