THE ENGLISH SPARROW (Passer domesticus). 



Phylum XII, CHORDATA; sub-phylum 3, VERTEBRATA; class 5, 

 AVES; section B, CARINAT^E; order 21, PASSERES. 



HABITAT. The home of the English sparrow was originally central 

 Europe, but owing to its pushing qualities, its hardiness, its universal 

 diet, and its rapid rate of multiplication it has spread not only over all 

 of Europe, but into almost all the regions of the earth inhabited by 

 civilized man, including Siberia, South Africa, Australia, and America. 

 It was first introduced into our country in 1850. The species frequents 

 the habitations of man, nesting about the buildings and gleaning its 

 food from alleys and barn yards. Its dirty, thieving, pugnacious 

 habits have brought it into general disrepute. 



Technical Note. Sparrows may be capered about buildings in various 

 ways. The ingenuity of the average boy can be trusted to cope with 

 his sparrowship's craftiness. If the birds are killed with a gun, very 

 fine shot known as taxidermist's or dust shot should be used. The 

 more specimens secured the better, especially for our own shy songsters 

 that have been driven out by these obtrusive foreigners. 



EXTERNAL FEATURES. Study the specimen in hand with reference 

 to the following details: 



a) The body divisions head, neck, and trunk. What is the shape 



of the head ? On account of the heavy covering of feathers the 

 neck seems relatively short, but when plucked it will be seen to 

 be quite a distinct body region. 



b) The hind limbs or legs, developed for walking and perching. You 



will note that they are composed of a thigh joint femur, a 

 "drum-stick" tibia, and an elongated tarsus. Locate the 

 heel and the knee. The femur is bound so close to the body 

 by a fold of skin that the tibia seems to be the uppermost joint. 

 Which joint, or joints, is elongated in wading birds ? Note the 



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