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Breeding Range. (Fig. 174). Fairly common locally throughout the Prairie Pothole Region; also occurs on the deltaic sand area of western Pembina County, and in the Turtle Mountains.

Breeding populations often fluctuate greatly in numbers from year to year. Apparently, populations reach their peak during drought years and are reduced to minimal numbers during wet years.

Breeding Habitat. Optimum breeding habitats include fens, and during dry years when water-levels of prairie ponds and lakes are low, shallow-marsh and deep-marsh zones are frequently inhabited. Within fens, breeding populations are largely restricted to patches of coarse emergent vegetation including common cattail, softstem bulrush, and phragmites. Characteristic species of deep-marsh and shallow-marsh zones that are occupied include common cattail, hybrid cattail, hardstem bulrush, river bulrush, alkali bulrush, whitetop, sloughgrass, slough sedge, and marsh smartweed. Occasionally during wet years, wet-meadow zones also are utilized, particularly those that are dominated by prairie cordgrass.

Nesting. Probable breeding season: Early June to late August; peak, mid-June to early August. Extreme egg dates (3 nests): June 12 [1902] in Ramsey County (Bowman 1904a) to July 12 [1915] in Benson County (R. Kellogg). On July 25 [1966], a nest with large young was found in McHenry County (Murray 1969). An adult with food in its beak was recorded on July 27 [1912] in Richland County (F. M. Bailey). Bishop (1904) observed the characteristic flight song of this species on July 19 [1901] in the Devils Lake area.

Nests are located on the ground in damp situations in coarse emergent vegetation.

Indicated clutch size (3 nests): each nest with 5 eggs.

Figure 174. Breeding Range of Sharp-tailed Sparrow.