A PUZZLE IN BIRDS 



not a Horned Lark and I instantly recognized the Lap- 

 land Longspur, for whicli I had so long looked in vain. 



And now for the Sparrows. The Tree Sparrow, or 

 Arctic Chippy and the slate-colored Junco, or Snow- 

 bird, are the only native sparrows which are common 

 in winter. We do not count that foreign pest, the 

 English Sparrow, which does not deserve to be con- 

 sidered as a bird, but rather as a feathered rat, a 

 pestiferous mongoose to destroy bird life and drive out 

 our beloved native birds. The pretty little warbled 

 song which comes from the weedy patch or the line of 

 shrubs or stubble along the fence on a bitter cold 

 February morning is the good cheer of the happy little 

 fellow from the far north, the Tree Sparrow, and it is 

 almost the only real song that we are likely to hear at 

 this season, though the Chickadee has some pleasant 

 notes, and the Junco will begin in IVIarch to practice 

 its simple trill. The Tree Sparrows are a bit timid, 

 but I have had them come up on the window-sill 

 to be fed and photographed. Ordinarily, though, they 

 will not venture quite so much, but we can scatter hay- 

 seed or small grain on the frozen snow in the garden 

 and they will greatly appreciate it. Associated with 

 them we shall often see the Junco, which is even shier. 



A few of that commonest of our sparrows, the Song 

 Sparrow, linger in sheltered places through the long 

 cold winter, and the whole tribe of them are back in 

 March. Early in the month we first hear their familiar 

 and beautiful song ringing out from the shrubbery 



165 



