Restoration is acknowledged worldwide as a conservation need to return ecosystem functions, though projects require monitoring to justify effort. In the San Francisco Bay, manmade salt ponds are becoming restored to tidal marsh, notably by the South Bay Salt Pond Restoration Project. The Alameda song sparrow (Melozipa melodia pusillula) has been documented to use restored and reference marshes, but their use of restored salt ponds is not fully understood. We hypothesize relationships between salt pond restoration age, percent cover of native plants, and Alameda song sparrow abundance. We also address questions on Alameda song sparrow habitat requirements. Alameda song sparrow abundance index data is used with botanical survey data at sites ranging in restoration age and native plant composition. We collect mist netting and bird banding data from a subset of these sites to confirm breeding success. Linear regression, principle component analysis, and analysis of variance show effects of each variable on Alameda song sparrow abundance. Similar Alameda song sparrow abundance across variably aged sites age and native composition both show how quickly nesting habitat might be provided for the species.