In Transition

This guy has every marking and color of a house sparrow but positively identifying it was a challenge. A male house sparrow is supposed to have a black beak which practically blends in with it's face. This one has a bi-colored beak: silver (top) and orange. [It's more obvious in my other shots.]  After searching the internet for over an hour, I found one like it...it's a house sparrow "in transition."  Now, I tried to figure out what a bird "in transition" is but failed miserably.  If anyone out there can enlighten me, I'd be very appreciative.  
The water is a result of the missus splashing in the dish. He seems to be enjoying it. I was so excited when I got this shot because it was the first of it's kind for me.  Then I found out it's like the world's most common bird. Oh, well...