November 25, 2007 - Foxy Sparrows Welcome to the Nature Notebook. Often around this time of year a bird appears under feeders that you might not have noticed before. It is a large sparrow with a rusty tail, gray face, reddish streaked chest and back, and a rufous cap. This is a Fox Sparrow, a bird that spends its summers in more northern climes. In November Fox Sparrows start showing up around bird feeders as they push south. Sometimes one will stay for quite a while before slipping to warmer places. These sparrows attract attention because of how they feed. Fox Sparrows are ground feeders, often kicking backward in leaf litter with both feet to uncover food. When doing this under a feeder they make hulls and seeds fly. If you feed birds, keep a sharp lookout for Fox Sparrows. It’s a great bird to add to your feeder list. This is PPL's naturalist, Jon Beam, with the Nature Notebook for WVIA.