Black-chested Sparrow, Peucaea humeralis

Black-chested Sparrow, Peucaea humeralis. Photograph taken Xochicalco, Moreles, March 2018. Photograph and identification courtesy of David F Smith, Alamos, Sonora.

The Black-chested Sparrow, Peucaea humeralis, is a member of the Passerellidae Family of New World Sparrows, which has one hundred thirty-two members placed in thirty genera, and is one of eight global species of the Peucaea Genus. They are known in Mexico as zacatonero pechinegro and zacatonero pecho negro.

The Black-chested Sparrow is sparrow-shaped and medium size in stature. The sexes are similar in appearance. Their bill has a black upper mandible and blue-gray mandible, their iris is brown, and the legs are pale pink. They have a blackish gray head with a white moustache and loral streaks. Their underparts are white with a broad black breast band and a rufous back.

The Black-chested Sparrow is found within the canopy of arid thorn forest and scrubby thickets at elevations up to 1,500 m (4,900 feet). They are sedentary permanent residents. They are generally found as single individuals or in pairs. They primarily consume insects including larvae, grasshoppers, termites, seeds and fruits. The Black-chested Sparrow has been poorly studied and very limited information about their behavioral patterns and biology has been documented.

In Mexico the Black-chested Sparrow is endemic to Mexico and found on the Pacific Slope from west central to south central portions of the country from southern Jalisco and Colima east to Morales and Puebla, south to Guerrero, and to southwest Oaxaca.

From a conservation perspective the Black-chested Sparrow is currently considered to be of Least Concern, with stable, widely-distributed populations.