House Sparrows in Alberta

House Sparrows live in Alberta all year. Cold winters broken by chinook thaws in the south. That makes the cold months the time your yard matters most to them: their winter diet shifts toward grain and feeder seed.

Continental — prairie in the southeast, aspen parkland in the center, boreal forest in the north and the Rockies in the west.

Across Alberta, house sparrows typically nest from May–August. Nest site: messy grass nest in any cavity, including nest boxes. Females lay 4–6 eggs, incubate for 10–14 days, and young leave the nest after 14 days.

Warm, sunny summers with long days.

• House Sparrows don't use nest boxes. Keep dense native shrubs and trees such as paper birch, rabbitbrush, willow (bebb) for nest sites.
• Delay heavy pruning of shrubs until after August.

Of the regional native plants we track for Alberta, these 8 provide food or cover house sparrows use:

An introduced species that evicts bluebirds and kills nestlings; use 1 1/2 in bluebird holes, monitor boxes, and avoid millet if it's a problem.

• Best foods: Millet, Cracked corn.
• In Alberta's winter: Cold winters broken by chinook thaws in the south.

Full diet breakdown for house sparrows · Best feeder for house sparrows