Trip to find Golden-crowned Sparrow in Maryland

Immature Golden-crowned Sparrow (photo from Internet)

    Sharon and I ventured to Chesapeake Farms near Chestertown, Maryland. We were in search of the Golden-crowned Sparrow. The drive down was about an hour and forty-five minutes through gorgeous snow covered farm fields and small rural towns. We arrived at the location around noon and met some other folks who told us the vicinity along the hedgerow that the sparrow was hanging out. They had seen the sparrow about five minutes before our arrival. So we parked the car and within five minutes the sparrow made it’s appearance. It was a first winter bird with limited amount of dull yellow spread across it’s forehead. It was an aggressive sparrow, chasing all the other sparrow species away from the seed that had been spread around by previous birders. The bird also was noticeably larger than the other sparrows.
    For those of you who have never seen a Golden-crowned Sparrow this is a great opportunity to do so. Other species seen were Brown Thrasher, Hermit Thrush, Cedar Waxwings, White-crowned, White-throated and Song Sparrows.