House sparrow (nest & eggs)

Description:

House sparrow nests are constructed from loose jumble of odds and ends, including coarse grass (with seed heads), cloth, feathers, twigs and sometimes litter. Tall nest, often with tunnel like entrance, particularly when built outside of a nestbox. In a nestbox may have more of a cup shape, and may be built up to cover sides of box. Eggs are cream, white, gray or greenish tint, with irregular fine brown speckles, shell is smooth with slight gloss. Variable background color, color and thickness of spots, and size.

Habitat:

The House Sparrow is closely associated with human habitations and cultivation. It is not the obligate commensal of humans some have suggested it is, as Central Asian birds usually breed away from humans in open country, and birds elsewhere are found away from humans. The only habitats in which the House Sparrow does not occur are dense forest and tundra. Well adapted to living around humans, it frequently lives and even breeds indoors, especially in factories, warehouses, and zoos. It has been recorded breeding in a English coal mine 640 metres (2,100 ft) below ground, and feeding on the Empire State Building's observation deck at night. It reaches its greatest densities in urban centres, but its reproductive success is greater in suburbs, where insects are more abundant. On a larger scale, it is most abundant in wheat-growing areas such as the Midwestern United States. It tolerates a variety of climates, but prefers drier conditions, especially in moist tropical climates. It has a number of adaptations to dry areas, including a high salt tolerance and an ability to survive without water by ingesting berries. In most of eastern Asia the House Sparrow is entirely absent, replaced by the Eurasian Tree Sparrow. Where these two species overlap, the House Sparrow is usually more common than the Eurasian Tree Sparrow, but one species may replace the other in a manner that Maud Doria Haviland described as "random, or even capricious". In most of its range the House Sparrow is extremely common, despite some declines, but in marginal habitats such as rainforest or mountain ranges, its distribution can be spotty

Notes:

Found in my yard,is a bit windy.