The Bird Book Part 76

550d. MACGILLIVRAY'S SEASIDE SPARROW. _Pa.s.serherbulus maritimus macgillivrai._

Range.--Coast of South Carolina. Like fisheri but grayer.

551. DUSKY SEASIDE SPARROW. _Pa.s.serherbulus nigrescens._

Range.--Marshes of Indian River near t.i.tusville, Florida.

This species is the darkest of the genus, both above and below, being nearly black on the upperparts. Their habits are like those of the others and the eggs are not likely to differ.

552. LARK SPARROW. _Chondestes grammacus grammacus._

Range.--Mississippi Valley from the Plains to Illinois and casually farther east, and from Manitoba to Texas; winters in Mexico.

This handsome Sparrow has the sides of the crown and ear patches chestnut, and the sides of the throat and a spot on the breast, black.

They are sweet singers and very welcome birds in their range, where they are quite abundant. Their nests are generally placed on the ground in the midst of or under a clump of weeds or tuft of gra.s.s, but sometimes in bushes or even trees; they are made of gra.s.ses and weeds and the eggs, which are usually laid in May, are white marked chiefly about the large end with blackish zigzag lines and spots. Size .80 .60.

552a. WESTERN LARK SPARROW. _Chondestes grammacus strigatus._

Range.--United States west of the Plains; breeds from British Columbia to Mexico.

This paler and duller colored variety is common on the Pacific coast; its habits and nests and eggs are like those of the last.

553. HARRIS'S SPARROW. _Zonotrichia querula._

Range.--Mississippi Valley, chiefly west, breeding in Manitoba and Saskatchewan, the exact range being unknown.

Although the birds are abundant during migrations, they seem to suddenly and strangely disappear during the breeding season. Supposed nests have been found a few inches above the ground in clumps of gra.s.s, the eggs being whitish, thickly spotted with shades of brown. Size .85 .65.

[Ill.u.s.tration 344: Lark Sparrow.]

[Ill.u.s.tration: White.]

[Ill.u.s.tration: Whitish.]

[Ill.u.s.tration: Harris's Sparrow.]

[Ill.u.s.tration: left hand margin.]

Page 343

554. WHITE-CROWNED SPARROW. _Zonotrichia leucophrys leucophrys._

Range.--North America breeding abundantly in Labrador and about Hudson Bay, and casually in northern New England and in western United States in the Rockies and Sierras.

Winters along our Mexican border and southward. A handsome species with a broad white crown bordered on either side by black, and with a white superciliary line and black lores; the underparts are uniform grayish white. These birds appear to be nowhere as common as the White-throated Sparrows with which they a.s.sociate during migrations and in the breeding grounds. They build on the ground, generally near the edges of woods or in clearings, and lay from four to six eggs similar but larger, and with as much variation in markings as those of the Song Sparrow; pale greenish blue, spotted and splashed with reddish brown and grayish. Size .90 .65. Data.--Nachook, Labrador, June 10, 1897. Nest of fine gra.s.ses on the ground in a clump of gra.s.s.

554a. GAMBEL'S SPARROW. _Zonotrichia leucophrys gambeli._

Range.--Rocky Mountains and westward from Mexico to Alaska, breeding chiefly north of the United States.

This bird is like the last but the lores are white. Its nesting habits and eggs cannot be distinguished from those of the former.

554b. NUTTALL'S SPARROW. _Zonotrichia leucophrys nuttalli._

Range.--Pacific coast from British Columbia to Lower California.

Similar to the last but smaller and browner above; nests on the ground or in bushes, the eggs not being distinguishable from those of the other White-crowns.

557. GOLDEN-CROWNED SPARROW. _Zonotrichia coronata_.

Range.--Pacific coast from Mexico to Alaska, breeding chiefly north of our borders.

This species has the crown yellow, bordered by black on the sides. Their habits are like those of the White-crowned Sparrows, they feeding upon the ground among the dead leaves, and usually being found in flocks and often accompanied by many of the last species. They nest upon the ground or in low bushes, and in May or June lay three or four eggs very similar to the last. Size .90 .65.

[Ill.u.s.tration 345: Pale greenish blue.]

[Ill.u.s.tration: White-crowned Sparrow.]

[Ill.u.s.tration: Pale greenish blue.]

[Ill.u.s.tration: 554a--557.]

[Ill.u.s.tration: right hand margin.]

Page 344

[Ill.u.s.tration 346: CHIPPING SPARROW.]

Page 345

558. WHITE-THROATED SPARROW. _Zonotrichia albicollis._

Range.--North America east of the Plains and breeding from the northern tier of states northward; winters from the Middle States southward.

To my mind this is the most beautiful of Sparrows, with its bright and softly blended plumage and the pure white throat boldly contrasting with its grayish breast and sides of the head; the lores are adorned with a bright yellow spot. They are one of the most abundant of Sparrows in the east during migrations and their musical piping whistle is heard from hedge and wood. They nest most abundantly north of our borders, laying their three or four eggs in gra.s.s lined hollows in the ground, or more rarely in nests in bushes. The eggs are white or bluish white, thickly spotted with several shades of brown. Size .85 .62. They nest most often in thickets or on the edge of swamps, in just such places as they are met with on their migrations.

559. TREE SPARROW. _Spizella monticola monticola._

Range.--North America east of the Plains, breeding north of the United States to the Arctic coast, east of the Rockies; winters within the United States.

A larger bird but somewhat resembling the common Chipping Sparrow, but browner above, with a black spot on the breast and no black on the head.

They are quite hardy birds and winter in many of the northern states where they may be found in flocks upon the snow, feeding on seeds of protruding weeds. They breed very abundantly in Labrador and about Hudson Bay, placing their green nests in hollows on the ground or moss; their three or four eggs are greenish white, abundantly speckled all over the surface with reddish brown. Size .80 .55. Data.--Foothills of Black Mountains, McKenzie River, Arctic America, June 13, 1899. Nest on the ground under a tuft of gra.s.s on level plain; made of gra.s.ses and moss and lined with feathers.

559a. WESTERN TREE SPARROW. _Spizella monticola ochracea._

Range.--North America west of the Plains, breeding in Alaska and wintering to Mexico. A paler form of the last, the nesting habits and eggs of which are the same.