The Ability of Urbanized House Sparrows to Adapt to Novel Objects

Abstract

The House sparrow (Passer domesticus) is an invasive species originally found in Europe, Asia, and Africa. They now occupy many urbanized spaces throughout the United States and are considered one of the most common birds in the country. Many species that live in urbanized areas rely on the areas for shelter and food. In this study, local house sparrows were put through trials in the wild to observe if they could work through obstacles to get food. We started by acclimating the birds, and then began switching out feeders and adding obstacles to them. The result shows that initially the house sparrows required at most a minute to break through the barrier to get to the food, but once they got through, they got through to the food within seconds. It was also discovered that large changes tend to scare them away easily. This illustrates how cautious house sparrows are, especially since minor changes, such as switching the type of feeder they will be eating out of, can cause them to leave an area abruptly. We also concluded that the House sparrows could do these types of trials, and once the House sparrows figure them out, it gets easier for them.