ID Keys: Strong black and white tail pattern, bigger bill than other
longspurs, plainer in summer than other longspurs.
McCown's Longspurs are birds of dry shortgrass
prairies of the western Great Plains. They often prefer areas with little
or no vegetation. Males can be easily found in the summer as they perform
their parachuting flight songs. The primary breedingrange of McCown's Longspurs is
in states to the west of South Dakota.
Habitat
Breeds in shortgrass prairie, often in very
poor and dry land with patches of open ground. In winter and in migration,
found in open habitats including shortgrass prairie and barren agricultural
fields.
Diet
Seeds make up a large portion of
the diet in all seasons, especially in the winter. Also feeds on insects
and spiders in the summer months.
Behavior
Does nearly all its foraging by walking
or running along the ground, although they will occasionally fly up to
capture flying insects in flight. Gregarious, usually foraging in
flocks except while nesting.
Breeding
Rare breeder in western South Dakota.
Song
Short melodic warbling.
Migration
Summers in the northwestern Great
Plains. Winters in the southern Great Plains and the Southwest.
