More on the fox sparrows

I've been keeping track of the fox sparrows since I first noticed them last week. I can't be certain as to how many I have in the proximity of my yard and the neighbor's, but I have seen two at the feeder at one time. Maybe it is just the two of them. They are aggressive and will spar with each other at the feeder and will also shoo away the juncos and other ground feeders who get too close.

Here is another look one of them.

Fox Sparrow

Under our big pine tree out back I noticed a speckled bird kicking away at the ground with both feet. I later noticed the same type of bird under the neighbor's pine, and one making a mess of our mulch in the front yard. They had a rusty color, with a patch of that color blushing under their eyes, and stripes along their bellies. I haven't seen one like this before so it took some investigating but I think they might be the red Fox Sparrow. The underbrush-kicking, rusty color, and tummy speckles seem to fit what my book described. If that's what they really are, then they are passing through to summer in northern Canada.

(Below, he's just above the snow line in the center of the photo, getting a threat from the robin).