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Home/Species/ Five-striped Sparrow

Amphispizopsis quinquestriata

(Sclater and Salvin, 1868)

Five-striped Sparrow

G4Apparently Secure Found in 2 roadless areas NatureServe Explorer →
G4Apparently SecureGlobal Rank
Least concernIUCN
UnknownThreat Impact
Five-striped Sparrow (Amphispizopsis quinquestriata). Photo by Adam Jackson, CC0 1.0, via iNaturalist.
Adam Jackson, CC0 1.0
Five-striped Sparrow (Amphispizopsis quinquestriata). Photo by Tom Field, CC BY 4.0, via iNaturalist.
Tom Field, CC BY 4.0
Five-striped Sparrow (Amphispizopsis quinquestriata). Photo by James M. Maley, CC BY 4.0, via iNaturalist.
James M. Maley, CC BY 4.0
Five-striped Sparrow (Amphispizopsis quinquestriata). Photo by Dan Vickers, CC BY 4.0, via iNaturalist.
Dan Vickers, CC BY 4.0
Five-striped Sparrow (Amphispizopsis quinquestriata). Photo by datadan, CC BY 4.0, via iNaturalist.
datadan, CC BY 4.0
Five-striped Sparrow (Amphispizopsis quinquestriata). Photo by Adam Jackson, CC0 1.0, via iNaturalist.
Adam Jackson, CC0 1.0
Identity
Unique IDELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.103989
Element CodeABPBX97030
Record TypeSPECIES
ClassificationSpecies
Classification StatusStandard
Name CategoryVertebrate Animal
IUCNLeast concern
Endemicoccurs (regularly, as a native taxon) in multiple nations
KingdomAnimalia
PhylumCraniata
ClassAves
OrderPasseriformes
FamilyPasserellidae
GenusAmphispizopsis
Synonyms
Aimophila quinquestriata(Sclater and Salvin, 1868)Amphispiza quinquestriata(Sclater and Salvin, 1868)
Other Common Names
Bruant pentaligne (FR) Zacatonero Cinco Rayas (ES)
Concept Reference
American Ornithologists' Union (AOU). 1998. Check-list of North American birds. Seventh edition. American Ornithologists' Union, Washington, D.C. [as modified by subsequent supplements and corrections published in The Auk]. Also available online: http://www.aou.org/.
Taxonomic Comments
Formerly synonymized with Amphispiza (Chesser et al. 2010) or Aimophila (e.g., AOU 1998), but separated based on differences in genetics (Klicka et al. 2014, Barker et al. 2015, Cicero et al. 2020) and morphology, behavior, and vocalizations (Ridgway 1901, Storer 1955, Wolf 1977, Groschupf 2020) commensurate with those between other genera of Passerellidae (AOS 2021).
Conservation Status
Rank Method Rank calculation - Biotics v2
Review Date2025-11-14
Change Date1996-12-04
Edition Date2025-11-14
Edition AuthorsGundy, R. L. (2025)
Threat ImpactUnknown
Range Extent200,000-2,500,000 square km (about 80,000-1,000,000 square miles)
Number of Occurrences81 - 300
Rank Reasons
This species has a limited range in western México and extreme southeastern Arizona. Little is known about the population due to its secretive habits.
Range Extent Comments
The range extends from Pima and Santa Cruz counties in southeastern Arizona, United States south through western México to northern Jalisco (AOU 1983, Groschupf 2021, González Gallina et al. 2024). It is generally thought to be resident, although some parts of the population may be migratory (Groschupf 2021). In Arizona, it is rare in the breeding season with few winter records (National Geographic Society 1983). See Mills (1979) for information on occurrence in Arizona. Using Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF) (2025) records, range extent is estimated to be 391,855 km² (RARECAT 2025).
Occurrences Comments
Applying a 5 km separation distance to GBIF (2025) records, 107 occurrences are estimated (RARECAT 2025).
Ecology & Habitat

Habitat

Dense bushy vegetation and grasses on steep hillsides, especially with acacia, mesquite or riparian vegetation (Subtropical Zone) (AOU 1983). Semidesert slopes, canyon slopes.

Reproduction

Clutch size 3-4.
Terrestrial Habitats
Shrubland/chaparral
Palustrine Habitats
Riparian
Other Nations (1)
United StatesN1
ProvinceRankNative
ArizonaS2Yes
Threat Assessments
ThreatScopeSeverityTiming
Unknown/undetermined———

—

Roadless Areas (2)
Arizona (2)
AreaForestAcres
Middle Dragoon RoadlessCoronado National Forest10,543
TumacacoriCoronado National Forest44,594
References (23)
  1. American Ornithological Society (AOS). Chesser, R. T., S. M. Billerman, K. J. Burns, C. Cicero, J. L. Dunn, B. E. Hernández-Baños, A. W. Kratter, I. J. Lovette, N. A. Mason, P. C. Rasmussen, J. V. Remsen, Jr., D. F. Stotz, and K. Winker. 2021. Sixty-second Supplement to the American Ornithological Society’s Check-list of North American Birds. Ornithology 138:1-18.
  2. American Ornithologists' Union (AOU). 1983. Check-list of North American Birds, 6th edition. Allen Press, Inc., Lawrence, Kansas. 877 pp.
  3. American Ornithologists' Union (AOU). 1998. Check-list of North American birds. Seventh edition. American Ornithologists' Union, Washington, D.C. [as modified by subsequent supplements and corrections published in <i>The Auk</i>]. Also available online: http://www.aou.org/.
  4. American Ornithologists' Union (AOU). Chesser, R.T., R.C. Banks, F.K. Barker, C. Cicero, J.L. Dunn, A.W. Kratter, I.J. Lovette, P.C. Rasmussen, J.V. Remsen, Jr., J.D. Rising, D.F. Stotz, and K. Winker. 2010. Fifty-first supplement to the American Ornithologists' Union Check-list of North American Birds. The Auk 127(3):726-744.
  5. Balda, R. P., and G. C. Bateman. 1971. Flocking and annual cycle of the piñon jay, <i>Gymnorhinus cyanocephalus</i>. Condor 73:287-302.
  6. BirdLife International. 2004b. Threatened birds of the world 2004. CD ROM. BirdLife International, Cambridge, UK.
  7. Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF). 2025. Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF) data portal. Online. Available: https://www.gbif.org/ (accessed 2025).
  8. González Gallina, A., J. C. Pérez Magaña, and A. González Gallina. 2024. Primer registro del Zacatonero Cinco Rayas (<i>Amphispizopsis quinquestriata</i>) para la Reserva de la Biosfera Chamela Cuixmala y propuesta de extensión de distribución. Huitzil Revista Mexicana de Ornitología 25(2): e674.
  9. Groschupf, K. 2021. Five-striped Sparrow (<i>Amphispizopsis quinquestriata</i>), version 1.1. In Birds of the World (P. G. Rodewald, Editor). Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, NY, USA. https://doi.org/10.2173/bow.fisspa.01.1
  10. Horn, H. S. 1968. The adaptive significance of colonial nesting in the Brewer's Blackbird. Ecology 49:682-694.
  11. Ligon, J. D. 1971. Late summer-autumnal breeding of the piñon jay in New Mexico. Condor 73:147-153.
  12. Mills, G. S. 1979. New locations for the five-striped sparrow in the United States. Birding 11(2):98-100, 102-104.
  13. Moore, W. S., and R. A. Dolbeer. 1989. The use of banding recovery data to estimate dispersal rates and gene flow in avian species: case studies in the Red-winged Blackbird and Common Grackle. Condor 91:242-253.
  14. National Geographic Society (NGS). 1983. Field guide to the birds of North America. National Geographic Society, Washington, DC.
  15. Parker III, T. A., D. F. Stotz, and J. W. Fitzpatrick. 1996. Ecological and distributional databases for neotropical birds. The University of Chicago Press, Chicago.
  16. Phillips, A., J. Marshall, and G. Monson. 1964. The birds of Arizona. The University of Arizona Press, Tucson, AZ.
  17. <p>NatureServe's Rapid Analysis of Rarity and Endangerment Conservation Assessment Tool (RARECAT). 2025. Version: 2.1.1 (released April 04, 2025).</p>
  18. Poole, A. F. and F. B. Gill. 1992. The birds of North America. The American Ornithologists' Union, Washington, D.C. and The Academy of Natural Sciences, Philadelphia, PA.
  19. Tarvin, K. A., and G. E. Woolfenden. 1999. Blue Jay (<i>Cyanocitta cristata</i>). No. 469 IN A. Poole and F. Gill, editors. The birds of North America. The Birds of North America, Inc., Philadelphia, PA. 32pp.
  20. Terres, J. K. 1980. The Audubon Society encyclopedia of North American birds. Alfred A. Knopf, New York.
  21. Thompson, F. R., III. 1994. Temporal and spatial patterns of breeding brown-headed cowbirds in the midwestern United States. Auk 111:979-990.
  22. Williams, L. 1952b. Breeding behavior of the Brewer blackbird. Condor 54:3-47.
  23. Willson, M. F. 1966. Breeding ecology of the Yellow-headed Blackbird. Ecological Monographs 36:51-77.