Chestnut-collared Longspur (Calcarius ornatus)
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Chestnut-collared Longspur

Calcarius ornatus (Townsend, JK, 1837)

13–16 cmLength20 gWeight

The chestnut-collared longspur (Calcarius ornatus) is a species of bird in the family Calcariidae.

Busiest months: October–November · Most records: United States, Canada

Vulnerable

Where and when it's recorded

Busiest months: October–November · Most records: United States, Canada

Chestnut-collared Longspur has been recorded at 57 of the 8,276 birding hotspots we track, in 2 countries and regions.

Records by month Northern Hemisphere

Where it's recorded most

  1. Willcox – Lake Cochise and Twin Lakes Golf CourseUnited States673 records
  2. Oak Hammock Marsh PWMACanada169 records
  3. San Diego River mudflatsUnited States161 records
More places
  1. Southeast Farallon IslandUnited States123 records
  2. Whitewater Draw Wildlife AreaUnited States122 records
  3. Bosque del Apache NWRUnited States93 records
  4. Sierra Vista EOPUnited States68 records
  5. Pt. Reyes – Abbotts LagoonUnited States44 records
  6. Whitefish PointUnited States44 records
  7. Hayward Regional ShorelineUnited States42 records

Countries and regions with the most records

United StatesCanada

eBird records via GBIF up to 2024-12-31. A record means someone listed it; more records partly mean more birders, not more birds.

About

The chestnut-collared longspur (Calcarius ornatus) is a species of bird in the family Calcariidae. Like the other longspurs, it is a small ground-feeding bird that primarily eats seeds. It breeds in prairie habitats in Canada and the northern United States and winters to the south in the United States and Mexico.

Excerpt from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0 · authors · Read more on Wikipedia

Questions

How big is the Chestnut-collared Longspur?

The Chestnut-collared Longspur is about 13–16 cm long and weighs around 20 g.

Where does the Chestnut-collared Longspur live?

Its breeding range: North America: south-central Canada and north-central USA. It is most often recorded in United States and Canada.

When is the best time to see the Chestnut-collared Longspur?

At the hotspots we track, it is recorded most in October and November (Northern Hemisphere).

Is the Chestnut-collared Longspur endangered?

The IUCN Red List classifies the Chestnut-collared Longspur as Vulnerable.

What does the Chestnut-collared Longspur eat?

Main food: Seeds.

What family is the Chestnut-collared Longspur in?

It belongs to the family Longspurs, Snow Buntings (Calcariidae), order Passerines (Passeriformes).

At a glance

Length
13–16 cm
Weight
20 g
Habitat
Grassland
Diet
Seeds
Lifestyle
Active on the ground
Migration
Migratory
Conservation
Vulnerable
More measurements
Wing
79 mm
Tail
56 mm
Bill
12 mm
Tarsus
20 mm

Averages from the AVONET dataset; length from field guides where available.

Range

North America: south-central Canada and north-central USA

Breeding range, IOC World Bird List 15.2

Classification

Order
Passerines Passeriformes
Family
Longspurs, Snow Buntings Calcariidae
Genus
Calcarius

Other birds in the genus Calcarius

Lapland LongspurLapland LongspurCalcarius lapponicusSmith's LongspurSmith's LongspurCalcarius pictusThick-billed LongspurThick-billed LongspurRhynchophanes mccowniiSnow BuntingSnow BuntingPlectrophenax nivalisMcKay's BuntingMcKay's BuntingPlectrophenax hyperboreus
Chestnut-collared Longspur

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Free to use with credit: “Illustration: Bird Album (birdalbum.com)”. Drawn by AI from a reference photo by Steven Mlodinow. ↗

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