Botteri's Sparrow

Botteri's sparrow is about 15 to 17 cm (5.9 to 6.7 in) long and weighs 17 to 26 g (0.60 to 0.92 oz). The sexes have the same plumage. Adults of the nominate subspecies have a reddish brown crown, pale lores, a pale supercilium, and a rusty streak behind the eye on an otherwise gray face. Their upperparts are reddish brown with thin black streaks (wider in the center of the back) and gray edges on the feathers. Their tail is dusky with lighter feather edges and a dark "ladder-shaped" pattern on the middle feathers. Voice: Only male Botteri's sparrows sing, a "complex, repetitive pattern". During the breeding season they sing from a perch or in flight. One description is "up to 7 short notes, followed by a trill of increasing tempo, then usually concluded by 1–2 phrases of 1–2 notes". A rendering from northern Central America is "tseet-tseet-pwi'i'i't-pweet-pweet-teu'teu'teu'teu'tuetuetuetue".