Birds of the Upper Cumberland Region: Species Accounts
Lincoln's Sparrow (Melospiza lincolnii)
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Lincoln's Sparrow [ventral view of adult]. Photograph Credit: Edmund K. LeGrand; Cumberland County, Tennessee; 6 January 2014.
Abundance: Very Uncommon during spring and fall; Rare during winter but possibly increasing; recorded in 13 Regional counties, 3 in Kentucky and 10 in Tennessee (Map of UCR Distribution); data from the Regional bird-monitoring efforts are too few to determine a trend in the population migrating through the Region (see also Regional Bird-Monitoring Plan).
Status: Transient; possibly becoming a Winter Resident; photograph (see above); photograph [ventral view of adult] (Edmund K. LeGrand; Leffle Webb Rd., Cumberland County, Tennessee; 16 October 2008).
Regional High Count and FBC/FBB High Count: 5 (4 October 2008; White County, Tennessee [FBC]; m. ob.); SBC/SBB High Count: 3 (12 May 2007; Pulaski County, Kentucky [SBC]; m. ob. and 9 May 2009; Putnam County, Tennessee [SBC]; m. ob.).
Out-of-Season (Winter) Records:
31 December 1996 (1) Barren County, Kentucky (David L. Roemer; Busroe 1996b).
5 December 2003 (1) Nash Rd., Putnam County, Tennessee (Stephen J. Stedman, Barbara H. Stedman; Casteel 2004b).
29 January 2004 (1) Beech Grove Rd., Pulaski County, Kentucky (Roseanna M. Denton; Palmer-Ball and McNeeley 2004b).
9 February 2004 (1) Barren County, Kentucky (David L. Roemer; Palmer-Ball and McNeeley 2004b).
25 December 2004 (1) Holleman's Bend Rd., Jackson County, Tennessee (Stephen J. Stedman, Barbara H. Stedman; Casteel 2005b).
14 December 2005 (1) Clay County, Tennessee (Barbara H. Stedman; Casteel 2006b), a CBC record [first Regional CBC record].
16 December 2006 (1) South Pointe subdivision, Bennett Rd., Putnam County, Tennessee (Daniel L. Combs, Kris Bolin; Casteel 2007b), a CBC record.
1 January 2009 (1) Pulaski County, Kentucky (Scott Marsh), a CBC record.
27 December 2010 (1) intersection of Denton Rd. and Rance Rd., White County, Tennessee (Stephen J. Stedman), a CBC record.
6 January 2014 (1) Leffle Webb Rd., Cumberland County, Tennessee (Edmund K. LeGrand photo [see above]).
Regional Extreme Dates:
Spring: 19 April 1990 (Putnam County, Tennessee; Stephen J. Stedman; Stedman 1993)–20 May 2005 (Putnam County, Tennessee; Stephen J. Stedman; Casteel 2005c).
Fall: 15 September 2001/2006 (Putnam County, Tennessee [FBC/FBC]; Barbara H. Stedman [both records])–11 November 1990 (Putnam County, Tennessee; Stephen J. Stedman; Stedman 1993); but see also Out-of-Season Records (above).
Note: Regional dates of earliest reported spring arrival and latest reported spring departure, as well as earliest reported fall arrival and latest reported fall departure, for the migration seasons 2002–2011 follow:
| Year | Early Spring Arrival Date | Late Spring Departure Date | Early Fall Arrival Date | Late Fall Departure Date |
| 2002 | 29 April | -- | 21 September | 31 October |
| 2003 | -- | 9 May | 20 September | 23 October * |
| 2004 | -- | 5 May | 18 September | 5 November * |
| 2005 | 30 April | 20 May | 2 October | 6 November * |
| 2006 | 29 April | -- | 15 September | -- * |
| 2007 | 28 April | 12 May | 8 October | 23 October |
| 2008 | -- | 9 May | 23 September | 30 November * |
| 2009 | -- | -- | 7 October | 6 November |
| 2010 | 24 April | -- | 24 September | 28 October * |
| 2011 |
* But see also Out-of-Season (Winter) Records (above).
Habitat: Mesic sites with brushy or weedy undergrowth tend to produce the Lincoln's Sparrow more than any other habitat.
YardWatch Results 2003 and 2004: 1 registration (of 125 possible) during 2003 and 3 (of 206 possible) during 2004, leading to an abundance classification of Rare during each year; the Lincoln's Sparrow was a bit less commonly found in Regional yards and neighborhoods than is the case throughout the Region generally.
Remarks: A skulking species that is probably a bit more common than the record thus far displays, the Lincoln's Sparrow is also a bit more in evidence during fall than during spring in the Region. The apparent increase in winter records, including CBC records, during the 2000s might indicate a response to climate change by this sparrow or it might indicate more observer effort during that period.
Check-lists of Birds for the Counties of the UCR
Check-lists of the birds of each county of the Upper Cumberland Region may be viewed by clicking on the links below. For each county, there are two check-lists: one list that shows the species that have been observed and where possible documented in the county within the larger list for the entire Region; and one list that includes only the species observed in the county with annotations for the date and observers for at least one sighting (the ultimate goal of the latter list will be to include annotations for the very first known Regional observation of each species in that county; this goal is probably one that will take many years to complete, if completion is even a possibility). To see if the species discussed in this species account has been observed in a county, click below or click on the link for the Map of UCR Distribution near the top of the page.
| Barren | Metcalfe | Adair | Russell | Pulaski |
| Monroe | Cumberland | Clinton | Wayne | McCreary |
| Macon | Clay | Pickett | Fentress | Scott |
| Smith | Jackson | Overton | Putnam | Morgan |
| DeKalb | White | Cumberland | ||
| Warren | Van Buren | Bledsoe |
Check-lists of Birds for Some Public Access Birding Sites of the UCR
Check-lists of the birds of some public access birding sites within the Upper Cumberland Region may be viewed via the links below. To see if the species dealt with in this species account has been observed within any of these sites, click on the appropriate link below. See the pages for each county within the Gazetteer for links to additional smaller public access birding sites with check-lists in progress.
Literature Cited
