Long long ago in prehistoric times there was another kind of sparrow that lived in the Middle East Like other birds this one nested in the wild It also migrated every year Then around twelve thousand years ago something in its neighborhood changed The mammal that walked upright stopped roaming around and wonder of wonders it started growing the sparrow’s favorite food Grain The early sparrow quickly changed its habits It began building its nests in cavities in human shelters instead of in trees near the fields of wheat and oats that people were now cultivating With such plentiful food the sparrow no longer needed to migrate Soon it lost the knack for long-distance flying altogether and rarely ventured more than a couple of miles from where it had hatched places that were now always near humans It had become the House Sparrow
The early House Sparrow built a bulky messy nest out of dried grasses and weeds lined with soft feathers It builds the same kind of nest today though now it often includes modern materials such as nylon string shreds of paper and plastic even bits of stuffing pulled from discarded armchairs The male and female build the nest together usually in a crevice or hole An average of five off-white eggs are laid each splattered with brown dots and dashes Both parents take turns keeping the eggs warm and when they hatch both parents feed the chicks For the first few days of their lives the nestlings are offered a constant supply of insects The parents then switch to feeding them the same vegetarian diet as their own grains and other seeds as well as flowers fruits buds and scraps we throw away A week or so after the chicks leave the nest the parents turn their backs on them The female returns to the nest and lays another clutch of eggs When this second brood is independent the male and female start all over again Sometimes if the weather stays warm they’ll raise a fourth brood or even a fifth So not only is the House Sparrow adaptable if there’s lots to eat it can multiply quickly And its most important food is also ours the grass seeds we call grain
