• Skip to main content
  • Skip to header right navigation
  • Skip to site footer
Nebraska Birding Guide logo, a sandhill crane in front of a yellow sky

Nebraska Birding Guide

Nebraska Birding Guide

  • Home
  • Top birding sites
    • Explore map
    • Ecological regions
  • Notable birds
  • Peak opportunities
  • Resources
Harris's Sparrow by Stephen Brenner.

Harris’s Sparrow

The Harris’s Sparrow is one of North America’s largest sparrows. The adults stand out with their black bibs and pink bills. They are a common winter resident in the southern and eastern third of the state. Migrants typically arrive in Nebraska beginning in late September and head northward to their breeding grounds in Canada in mid-March. Harris’s Sparrows are most numerous in the Tallgrass Prairie Ecoregion and in the southeastern portion of the Mixed-grass Prairie Ecoregion where they forage in shrubby areas bordering fields.

Learn more

Where to observe

  • Lincoln Saline Wetland Nature Center, Lincoln, NE
  • Chalco Hills Recreation Area, Omaha, NE
  • Rowe Sanctuary, Gibbon, NE
  • Harlan County Reservoir, Republican City, NE

Viewing tips & etiquette

Harris’s Sparrows often forage with other sparrows on the ground. Their large size makes them stand out among other sparrows. Look for these sparrows along trails that have a shrubby border next to fields.

Photo of the Harris’s Sparrow by Stephen Brenner.

Navigation

  • Home
  • Top birding sites
    • Explore map
    • Ecological regions
  • Notable birds
  • Peak opportunities
  • Resources

Find us

Nebraska Game and Parks Commission

2200 N. 33rd St.
Lincoln, NE 68503

Social

Find more watchable wildlife opportunities on our social.

  • Facebook

Copyright © 2025 · Nebraska Birding Guide · All Rights Reserved · All images copyrighted by Nebraska Game and Parks Commission. Powered by Mai Theme

Return to top