FINCHES 



ish, more or less lengthwise streaked birds 

 that live on or near the ground, yet there are 

 certain marks, which if learned, will help in 

 telling them apart. The vesper and savanna 

 sparrows look very much alike and live very 

 much in the same kind of cover. The vesper 

 sparrow has partly white outer tail feathers 

 which may be seen when the bird is standing 

 still but show more plainly as a field mark 

 when it flies. The savanna sparrow lacks the 

 white in the tail and is slightly smaller in size, 

 but has a yellowish line over the eye that will 

 serve as a good field mark. 



The vesper sparrow is a common bird along 

 country roads sitting on fence posts or bushes ; 

 a favorite perch being the cross arm of a 

 telephone pole. It lacks a distinctive call 

 note but has a pretty, though weak, song of 

 several notes that is one of the pleasing 

 sounds in the hot summer days along the 

 dusty highways. The vesper sparrow makes 

 its shallow nest of grass in some slight 

 depression on the ground in grain or stubble- 

 field or weedy pasture. 



, Western savanna sparrow, Passerculus 



sandwichensis alaudinus. 5.00 



Distribution: Western North America 



from northwestern Alaska to southern 



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