Junco

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Junco

"Junco" is also a shrub in the genus Adolphia

Adolphia

Adolphia is a genus of shrubs in the Rhamnaceae containing only two species. These are rigid, thorny, flowering bushes. Adolphia californica, the California prickbush or California spineshrub, is native to southern California and northern Mexico....
and the Spanish term for rush
Juncus

Juncus is a genus in the plant family Juncaceae. It consists of 225 to 300 species of grassy plants commonly called rushes. They occur in all wet regions of the world, but rarely in the tropics....
es (genus Juncus).

The Juncos , genus
Genus

A genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the classification of living and fossil organisms. The taxonomic ranks are domain , kingdom , phylum, class , order , family , genus, and species....
Junco, are small American sparrow
American sparrow

American sparrows are a group of mainly New World passerine birds, forming part of the family Emberizidae. American sparrows are seed-eating birds with conical bills, brown or gray in color, and many species have distinctive head patterns....
s. Their systematics
Systematics

Biological systematics is the study of the diversification of life on the planet Earth, both past and present, and the relationships among living things through time....
are still very confusing after decades of research, with various authors accepting between three and twelve species
Species

In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring....
. Despite their name appearing to derive from the Spanish term for the plant genus Juncus

Juncus

Juncus is a genus in the plant family Juncaceae. It consists of 225 to 300 species of grassy plants commonly called rushes. They occur in all wet regions of the world, but rarely in the tropics....
(rushes), these birds are seldom found among rush plants as these prefer wet ground while juncos rather like dry soil.

Their breeding habitat is coniferous or mixed forest areas throughout North America
North America

North America is the northern continent of the Americas, situated in the Earth's northern hemisphere and almost totally in the western hemisphere....
, ranging from subarctic taiga
Taiga

Taiga is a biome characterized by coniferous forests. Covering most of inland Alaska, Canada, Sweden, Finland, inland Norway and Russia , as well as parts of the extreme northern continental United States , northern Kazakhstan and Japan , the taiga is the world's largest terrestrial biome....
to high altitude mountain
Mountain

A mountain is a landform that stretches above the surrounding land in a limited area usually in the form of a peak. A mountain is generally steeper than a hill....
forests in Mexico
Mexico

The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federalism constitutionalism republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of Mexico....
and Central America
Central America

Central America is a central geography region of the Americas. It is the southernmost, isthmus portion of the North American continent, which connects with South America on the southeast....
south to Panama
Panama

Panama, officially the Republic of Panama , is the southernmost country of Central America and, in turn, North America. Situated on an isthmus connecting North and South America, some categorize it as a transcontinental nation....
.

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Encyclopedia

"Junco" is also a shrub in the genus Adolphia
Adolphia

Adolphia is a genus of shrubs in the Rhamnaceae containing only two species. These are rigid, thorny, flowering bushes. Adolphia californica, the California prickbush or California spineshrub, is native to southern California and northern Mexico....
and the Spanish term for rush
Juncus

Juncus is a genus in the plant family Juncaceae. It consists of 225 to 300 species of grassy plants commonly called rushes. They occur in all wet regions of the world, but rarely in the tropics....
es (genus Juncus).

The Juncos , genus
Genus

A genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the classification of living and fossil organisms. The taxonomic ranks are domain , kingdom , phylum, class , order , family , genus, and species....
Junco, are small American sparrow
American sparrow

American sparrows are a group of mainly New World passerine birds, forming part of the family Emberizidae. American sparrows are seed-eating birds with conical bills, brown or gray in color, and many species have distinctive head patterns....
s. Their systematics
Systematics

Biological systematics is the study of the diversification of life on the planet Earth, both past and present, and the relationships among living things through time....
are still very confusing after decades of research, with various authors accepting between three and twelve species
Species

In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring....
. Despite their name appearing to derive from the Spanish term for the plant genus Juncus
Juncus

Juncus is a genus in the plant family Juncaceae. It consists of 225 to 300 species of grassy plants commonly called rushes. They occur in all wet regions of the world, but rarely in the tropics....
(rushes), these birds are seldom found among rush plants as these prefer wet ground while juncos rather like dry soil.

Their breeding habitat is coniferous or mixed forest areas throughout North America
North America

North America is the northern continent of the Americas, situated in the Earth's northern hemisphere and almost totally in the western hemisphere....
, ranging from subarctic taiga
Taiga

Taiga is a biome characterized by coniferous forests. Covering most of inland Alaska, Canada, Sweden, Finland, inland Norway and Russia , as well as parts of the extreme northern continental United States , northern Kazakhstan and Japan , the taiga is the world's largest terrestrial biome....
to high altitude mountain
Mountain

A mountain is a landform that stretches above the surrounding land in a limited area usually in the form of a peak. A mountain is generally steeper than a hill....
forests in Mexico
Mexico

The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federalism constitutionalism republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of Mexico....
and Central America
Central America

Central America is a central geography region of the Americas. It is the southernmost, isthmus portion of the North American continent, which connects with South America on the southeast....
south to Panama
Panama

Panama, officially the Republic of Panama , is the southernmost country of Central America and, in turn, North America. Situated on an isthmus connecting North and South America, some categorize it as a transcontinental nation....
. Northern birds usually migrate
Bird migration

Bird migration refers to the regular seasonal journeys undertaken by many species of birds. Bird movements include those made in response to changes in food availability, habitat or weather....
farther south; southern populations are permanent residents or altitudinal migrants, moving only a short distance downslope to avoid severe winter weather in the mountains.

These birds forage on the ground. In winter, they often forage in flocks. They mainly eat insects and seeds. They usually nest in a well-hidden location on the ground or low in a shrub or tree.

Systematics

Dark-eyed Junco
Dark-eyed Junco

The Dark-eyed Junco, Junco hyemalis, is the best-known species of the juncos, a genus of small greyish American sparrows. This bird is common across much of temperate North America and in summer ranges far into the Arctic....
, Junco hyemalis
Gray-headed Junco, Junco hyemalis caniceps - sometimes considered distinct species
Oregon Juncos, oreganus subspecies group - often considered distinct species
Pink-sided Junco, Junco hyemalis mearnsi - sometimes included with oreganus group in distinct species
Red-backed Junco, Junco hyemalis dorsalis - sometimes included with J. h. caniceps in distinct species
Slate-colored Juncos, hyemalis subspecies group - sometimes considered distinct species
White-winged Junco
White-winged Junco

The White-winged Junco is a subspecies of the Dark-eyed Junco. It is similar to the eastern birds of that variable species, which are called Slate-colored Juncos or the hyemalis group....
, Junco hyemalis aikeni - sometimes considered distinct species
Guadalupe Junco
Guadalupe Junco

The Guadalupe Junco, Junco hyemalis insularis, is a bird Endemic to Guadalupe Island off Pacific Mexico. It is often considered a subspecies of the Dark-eyed Junco, for example by the IUCN which lumps these taxa in the 2008 IUCN Red List....
, Junco insularis -sometimes included in J. hyemalis
Yellow-eyed Junco
Yellow-eyed Junco

The Yellow-eyed Junco is a species of junco, small American sparrows. It is the only North American junco with yellow eyes.Its range is primarily in Mexico, extending into some of the mountains of the southern tips of the U.S....
, Junco phaeonotus
Baird's Junco, bairdi group
Chiapas Junco , fulvescens group
Guatemala Junco, alticola group
Mexican Junco, phaeonotus group
Volcano Junco
Volcano Junco

The Volcano Junco, Junco vulcani, is an American sparrow endemic to the high mountains of Costa Rica and western Panama.This junco breeds above the timberline, typically at altitudes above 3000m, but there is an isolated population at 2100 m on the Caribbean slope of Costa Rica, and forest clearance on Cerro de la Muerte has allowed thi...
, Junco vulcani