Is the White-throated Sparrow Canada's most interesting bird?

Discover the fascinating world of the White-throated Sparrow: birds with two colour morphs, a unique mating system, and songs that spread like the latest Taylor Swift release. Professors Ken Otter and Scott Ramsay reveal the surprising complexity behind these seemingly ordinary birds.

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Scott Ramsay is a Biology professor at Wilfrid Laurier University in Waterloo, ON, where he has been studying White-throated Sparrows since 2001. Since joining the faculty at Laurier, his research has included studies of the White-throated Sparrow populations in Algonquin Park, and Prince George BC in collaboration with Ken Otter.

Ken Otter is a professor at the University of Northern British Columbia. Ken and his team were behind much of the song research for White-throated Sparrows. His primary interest is in how forest birds respond to anthropogenic disturbance.

Andrea Gress (she/her) secretly thinks Piping Plovers are better than all the other birds...studied Renewable Resource Management at the University of Saskatchewan. She pivoted towards birds, after an internship in South Africa. Upon returning, she worked with Piping Plovers in Saskatchewan, and then as the Ontario Piping Plover Coordinator. Years of sharing her love of plovers with beach goers has turned into a full time communications role with Birds Canada. 

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