The nests were constructed of dry bark and grasses, loosely put together, and very warmly lined with feathers. On the ground they were usually concealed in a tuft of grass. In all instances the female alone was found on the nests, the male being very rarely seen in their vicinity. The usual number of eggs in a nest was four or five, occasionally six, and even seven.
Dr. Suckley obtained a single specimen at Fort Dalles, and Dr. Cooper saw a flock in September, 1863, and again in 1864 at the mouth of the Columbia. Lieutenant Bryan met with them among the Rocky Mountains in latitude 39°, in August. Mr. Ridgway found them very common during the winter in the interior.
Dr. Coues found this Sparrow common in all the wooded districts of Labrador. It was very tame and unsuspicious, showing no fear even when closely approached. I have never met with any, in summer, in any part of New Brunswick or Nova Scotia.
This Sparrow is occasionally abundant in Massachusetts early in October, but rarely appears in full numbers until November. Some remain in the gardens in and about Boston during the winter, and during November the marshes of Fresh Pond are filled with them, when their wailing autumnal chant is in marked contrast with the sweet and sprightly song with which they enliven the spring, just before they are about to depart for their summer homes. They remain until the latter part of April, and Mr. Allen has observed them at Springfield till about the first of May.
In regard to their song, Mr. William Brewster informs me that they usually commence singing about the 25th of March. Their song is a loud, clear, and powerful chant, starting with two high notes, then falling rapidly, and ending with a low, sweet warble. He has heard a few singing with their full vigor in November and December, but this is rare.
Dr. Coues found them not common in South Carolina, but Dr. Kennerly states that they were quite abundant in December on the Little Colorado, in New Mexico, feeding on the fruit of the wild grape and upon seeds.
During the love-season the Tree Sparrow is quite a fine musician, its song resembling that of the Canary, but finer, sweeter, and not so loud. In their migrations, Mr. Audubon states, a flock of twenty or more will perch upon the same tree, and join in a delightful chorus. Their flight is elevated and graceful, and in waving undulations. On opening the stomachs of those he shot at the Magdeleine Islands, Mr. Audubon found them containing minute shell-fish, coleopterous insects, hard seeds, berries, and grains of sand.
Nests obtained near Fort Anderson confirm the descriptions given by Mr. Hutchins, as observed in the settlement at Hudson’s Bay. The eggs, which are much larger than those of the other species of Spizella, measure .85 by .65 of an inch. Their ground-color is a light green, over which the eggs are very generally freckled with minute markings of a foxy brown. These markings are distributed with great regularity, but so sparsely as to leave the ground distinctly visible.
Fringilla pusilla, Wilson, Am. Orn. II, 1810, 121, pl. xvi, f. 2.—Licht. Verzeich. Doubl. 1823, No. 252.—Aud. Orn. Biog. II, 1834, 299, pl. cxxxix. Spizella pusilla, Bonap. List, 1838.—Ib. Conspectus, 1850, 480.—Baird, Birds N. Am. 1858, 473.—Samuels, 319. Emberiza pusilla, Aud. Syn. 1839, 104.—Ib. Birds Am. III, 1841, 77, pl. clxiv. Spinites pusillus, Cab. Mus. Hein. 1851, 133. Fringilla juncorum, Nutt. Man. I, 1832, 499 (2d ed.,) 1840, 577 (supposed by him to be Motacilla juncorum, Gmelin, I, 952; Sylvia juncorum, Latham, Ind. II, 511; Little Brown Sparrow, Catesby, Car. I, 35).
Sp. Char. Bill red. Crown continuous rufous-red, with a faint indication of an ashy central stripe, and ashy nuchal collar. Back somewhat similar, with shaft-streaks of blackish. Sides of head and neck (including a superciliary stripe) ashy. Ear-coverts rufous. Beneath white, tinged with yellowish anteriorly. Tail-feathers and quills faintly edged with white. Two whitish bands across the wing-coverts. Autumnal specimens more rufous. Length about 5.75; wing, 2.34.
Hab. Eastern North America to the Missouri River; San Antonio, Texas in winter (Dresser, Ibis, 1865, 489).
This species is about the size of S. socialis, but is more rufous above; lacks the black forehead and eye stripe; has chestnut ears, instead of ash; has the bill red, instead of black; lacks the clear ash of the rump; has a longer tail, etc. It is more like monticola, but is much smaller; lacks the spot on the breast, and the predominance of white on the wings, etc. The young have the breast and sides streaked, and the crown slightly so.
Habits. The common Field Sparrow occupies a well-defined and somewhat compact area, being resident within the United States, and in its migrations not removing far from its summer abode. In the summer it breeds from Virginia to Maine, as far as the central and western portions. It is not found near Calais, but occurs and breeds near Norway, Oxford County. In the interior it is found still farther north, in Canada, Iowa, and Wisconsin, to the Red River settlements, where it was found breeding by Donald Gunn. At Hamilton, Ontario, Mr. McIlwraith states it to be a rather rare summer resident. It breeds in Southern Wisconsin and in Iowa, but is not abundant. It does not appear to have been found west of the Missouri Valley.
This Sparrow arrives in Massachusetts early in April, and is found almost exclusively in open pastures, old fields, and in clearings remote from villages. It is a shy, retiring bird, and seems to avoid the near presence of man. Wilson states that it has no song, nothing but a kind of chirruping, not much superior to the chirping of a cricket. But this is quite a mistake, as it is in reality a very varied and fine singer. Its notes are not very powerful, and cannot be heard any distance, but they are very pleasing, although little known or appreciated. It continues in full song until into July, when the second brood is about hatching, when its notes relax, but do not cease until just before its departure in September or early October.
Mr. D. D. Hughes, of Grand Rapids, Mich., in an interesting paper on the habits of this species, speaks of its beautiful tinkling song as one of its most marked features. To his ear it resembles the ringing of a tiny bell more nearly than anything else. In the early morning and at evening the fields ring with their plaintive and tender peals. It sings at all hours of the day, during the nesting-season, even in the noonday heat of summer, when most other birds are silent.
In Virginia these birds may be found throughout the year, though probably not the same birds in the same localities, some retiring farther south and others coming to take their places from the north. In winter they are found, in the greatest abundance in South Carolina and Georgia, occurring in large loose flocks, found chiefly along the roadsides and in old fields and pastures in the rural districts.
The Field Sparrow nests both on the ground and in low bushes, or among tangled clusters of vines. I have found their nests in all these situations, and have no doubt the nature of the surface may have something to do with the position. In high dry pastures, in sheltered situations, I have always found their nests on the ground. In the wet meadows and fields subject to a rise of water, as about the Potomac, near Washington, where these birds are very abundant, they almost invariably nest in bushes at a height of two or three feet.
Mr. Audubon says that during the winter these birds are quite common throughout Louisiana, and the country about the Mississippi, as far as Kentucky. They begin to depart from the South early in March, and move slowly northward as the season advances. He states that they begin to nest in May, and raise three broods in a season. This is not the case in New England, where they do not often have more than a single brood.
PLATE XXVII.
1. Spizella socialis, Ad., Pa., 10150.
2. Spizella pusilla. ♀ Pa.,