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American Pipit Anthus rubescens
The American Pipit, a slender brown bird about the size of a sparrow stands about seven inches tall as an adult and prefers to live in open country. Its crown, chest and back show a brown color with dark streaks and its legs are normally black. The Pipits beak is slim and narrow and the ring around its eye is white. The bird has a white throat with dark stripes. Their tail is dark with the feathers on the outer edges colored white. Both sexes are similar in color and markings. The American Pipit when on the ground usually walks and bobs its tail. The American Pipit is a summer visitor in South Dakota but never breeds there. Also the American Pipit is the only Pipit in Kentucky. The American Pipit confines iself entirely to open country showing a marked preference for wet fields and bogs, especially those areas frequented by Wilson's Snipe. In the autumn months birders see the Pipit on comparetively dry plowed ground, upland pastures and stubble fields. In the warm weather months the Pipit lives in the Arctic and mountainous tundra. While migrating and in the winter time, birders observe the bird on the seashore, unproductive fields, rural farms and on golf courses. When the male is in an amorous mood and wants to attract a female Pipit he flies repeatedly from 50 to 200 feet high. He then soars downward singing his courtship song. His legs are straight out and he holds his tail upright. Alpine and Arctic tundra. The Pipit, a northern warm weather bird breeds from Alaska, Mackenzie, Canadian Arctic Islands, and Newfoundland. Also it breeds in the mountain ranges south to California and in New Mexico in the West. In the East it breeds in the northern parts of New Hampshire. It only breeds in the alpine and Arctic tundra. The bird is a common migrant and breeder throughout the Rocky Mountains. After mating the female Pipit lays four to five eggs. The eggs have brown spots and striped with black marks. The incubation period for Pipits is about two weeks. About two weeks after birth the young Pipits fledge. The birds have only one brood each year. The shape of the nest resembles a cup and built of grass and small branches. The Pipits usually place the nest on the ground protected by an overhanging rock or beneath a large clump of heavy grass or beneath sedges. The birds build the nest in about four days. Go To Page: 1 2
The copyright of the article American Pipit in Birding is owned by Fred J. Kane. Permission to republish American Pipit in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.
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