{"id":15834,"date":"2014-09-15T05:33:11","date_gmt":"2014-09-15T11:33:11","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/?p=15834"},"modified":"2023-03-07T06:32:57","modified_gmt":"2023-03-07T13:32:57","slug":"centennial-valley-bathing-vesper-sparrows","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2014\/09\/15\/centennial-valley-bathing-vesper-sparrows\/","title":{"rendered":"Centennial Valley Bathing Vesper Sparrows"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"VesperVesper Sparrow air drying after its bath – Nikon D810, f7.1, 1\/2000, ISO 640, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light, not baited<\/span><\/p>\n

While looking for raptors to photograph in the Centennial Valley of Montana I always keep my eyes on the look out for other birds and animals and some times a small movement\u00a0draws my attention\u00a0and I\u00a0spot other, tinier birds. A Vesper Sparrow caught my eye last week as it fluttered and fluffed on an old barb wire fence near the road and I just had to photograph it.<\/p>\n

At one point in time Vesper Sparrows were called “Bay-winged buntings” but John Burroughs (1837-1921) changed the name because he thought their song sounded melodious<\/a><\/span> in the evening. Other obsolete common names include Grass Finch and Hesperian Bird. The “bay-winged” part of the old name probably came from the rufous coverts that sometimes show on this sparrow.<\/p>\n

\"BathingBathing Vesper Sparrow\u00a0– Nikon D810, f7.1, 1\/1600, ISO 640, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light, not baited<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

The bathing Vesper Sparrow wasn’t alone and soon I was focusing on the others that were bathing in a spring along side of the road. There was plenty of water flowing in the spring and that must be what attracted them to the area. These sparrows will bathe, fluff and then bathe some more. These medium sized sparrows can sure make the water fly!<\/p>\n

\"VesperVesper Sparrow splashing in a spring\u00a0– Nikon D810, f7.1, 1\/1600, ISO 640, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light, not baited<\/span><\/p>\n

Vesper Sparrow populations have declined in many areas of the eastern United States where they are listed as endangered, threatened and a species of special concern\u00a0but still appear to be doing well in other areas of their range. Farming practices, chemicals, early hay harvesting and large scale tillage are contributing to their decline. The Vesper Sparrow is the only member of its taxonomic genus, Poocetes gramineus<\/em>.<\/p>\n

I love to photograph these sparrows and listen to their songs<\/a><\/span>, they might be tiny, little brown birds but they fascinate me, as all birds do.<\/p>\n

More to come soon from my recent Montana journey.<\/p>\n

Life is<\/em> good.<\/p>\n

Mia<\/p>\n

Click here<\/span><\/a> to see more of my Vesper Sparrow photos plus facts and information about this species.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A Vesper Sparrow caught my eye last week as it fluttered and fluffed on an old barb wire fence near the road and I just had to photograph it.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":110848,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":true,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1513,27,223,12,2258],"tags":[4004,5109,4373,2661,4021,4438,2659,2657,2660,855,4195,2688,165,5434,2658,3996],"class_list":["post-15834","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-beaverhead-county-montana","category-avian","category-centennial-valley","category-montana","category-vesper-sparrows","tag-adult","tag-bath","tag-bathing","tag-bay-winged-buntings","tag-bird-photography","tag-fluffing","tag-fluttering","tag-poocetes-gramineus","tag-sagebrush-steppe","tag-sparrow","tag-sparrows","tag-splashing","tag-spring","tag-valley","tag-vesper-sparrow","tag-water"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/vesper-sparrow-bathing-mia-mcpherson-4251.jpg","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p11Mom-47o","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":39927,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2016\/06\/08\/cooperative-vesper-sparrow-in-montana\/","url_meta":{"origin":15834,"position":0},"title":"Cooperative Vesper Sparrow in Montana","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"June 8, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"Five evenings ago I was able to photograph a cooperative Vesper Sparrow in Montana's Centennial Valley.","rel":"","context":"In "Beaverhead County"","block_context":{"text":"Beaverhead County","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/locations\/montana\/beaverhead-county-montana\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Perched adult Vesper Sparrow, Red Rock Lakes National Wildlife Refuge, Centennial Valley, Beaverhead County, Montana","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/vesper-sparrow-adult-mia-mcpherson-0124.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/vesper-sparrow-adult-mia-mcpherson-0124.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/vesper-sparrow-adult-mia-mcpherson-0124.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/vesper-sparrow-adult-mia-mcpherson-0124.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":110831,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2023\/03\/07\/vesper-sparrow-at-dawn\/","url_meta":{"origin":15834,"position":1},"title":"Vesper Sparrow At Dawn","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"March 7, 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"As this winter drags on, I find myself yearning for the sounds of spring. In particular, I can barely wait to hear the soft morning song of a Vesper Sparrow.","rel":"","context":"In "Birds"","block_context":{"text":"Birds","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/avian\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Dawn Vesper Sparrow, Wasatch Mountains, Summit County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/vesper-sparrow-adult-mia-mcpherson-0629.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/vesper-sparrow-adult-mia-mcpherson-0629.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/vesper-sparrow-adult-mia-mcpherson-0629.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/vesper-sparrow-adult-mia-mcpherson-0629.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":49644,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2017\/12\/02\/juvenile-vesper-sparrow-in-southwest-montana\/","url_meta":{"origin":15834,"position":2},"title":"Juvenile Vesper Sparrow in Southwest Montana","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"December 2, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"I have seen very few juvenile Vesper Sparrows and I have just a handful of images of them so when I spot one in good light I certainly want to do my best to photograph it.","rel":"","context":"In "Beaverhead County"","block_context":{"text":"Beaverhead County","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/locations\/montana\/beaverhead-county-montana\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Perched juvenile Vesper Sparrow, Centennial Valley, Beaverhead County, Montana","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/vesper-sparrow-juvenile-mia-mcpherson-2374.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/vesper-sparrow-juvenile-mia-mcpherson-2374.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/vesper-sparrow-juvenile-mia-mcpherson-2374.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/vesper-sparrow-juvenile-mia-mcpherson-2374.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":112096,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2023\/04\/06\/vesper-sparrow-outside-my-window\/","url_meta":{"origin":15834,"position":3},"title":"Vesper Sparrow Outside My Window","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"April 6, 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"I was quite surprised to find a Vesper Sparrow outside my window yesterday after the prolonged spring snowstorm finally left the Salt Lake Valley and Utah.","rel":"","context":"In "Birds"","block_context":{"text":"Birds","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/avian\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Singing Vesper Sparrow adult, Wasatch Mountains, Summit County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/vesper-sparrow-adult-singing-mia-mcpherson-3200.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/vesper-sparrow-adult-singing-mia-mcpherson-3200.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/vesper-sparrow-adult-singing-mia-mcpherson-3200.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/vesper-sparrow-adult-singing-mia-mcpherson-3200.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":103942,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2022\/07\/07\/summer-vesper-sparrow-photos\/","url_meta":{"origin":15834,"position":4},"title":"Summer Vesper Sparrow Photos","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"July 7, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"Today my post is focused on a little brown bird with a wonderful song I photographed yesterday in the Wasatch Mountains. The LBB was a handsome Vesper Sparrow.","rel":"","context":"In "Birds"","block_context":{"text":"Birds","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/avian\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Vesper Sparrow fluffing its feathers, Wasatch Mountains, Summit County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/vesper-sparrow-summer-mountains-mia-mcpherson-3187.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/vesper-sparrow-summer-mountains-mia-mcpherson-3187.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/vesper-sparrow-summer-mountains-mia-mcpherson-3187.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/vesper-sparrow-summer-mountains-mia-mcpherson-3187.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":52006,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2018\/05\/06\/vesper-sparrow-on-antelope-island\/","url_meta":{"origin":15834,"position":5},"title":"Vesper Sparrow On Antelope Island","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"May 6, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"Vesper Sparrows aren't bright or colorful birds but I find their appearance subtly beautiful in a quiet kind of way and their songs are always a delight to hear in the morning or late afternoon.","rel":"","context":"In "Antelope Island State Park"","block_context":{"text":"Antelope Island State Park","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/locations\/utah\/antelope-island-state-park\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Vesper Sparrow in early morning light, Antelope Island State Park, Davis County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/vesper-sparrow-rock-mia-mcpherson-6939.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/vesper-sparrow-rock-mia-mcpherson-6939.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/vesper-sparrow-rock-mia-mcpherson-6939.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/vesper-sparrow-rock-mia-mcpherson-6939.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15834","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=15834"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15834\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/110848"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=15834"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=15834"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=15834"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}