Mountain Song-Sparrow 387 



Description. — Male — Above brown, rich umber on tlie crown, which 

 has a median stripe of ashy-grey ; greyer on the back ; paler umber 

 on the wings and tail ; the crown narrowly, the back broadly streaked 

 with dusky brown ; ear-coverts and a superciliary streak grey, separated 

 by a brown postocular line ; below white, the breast, malar region and 

 flanks marked with wedge-shaped streaks of brown ; in the middle of 

 the breast the spots forming an irregular patch ; iris brown, bill dusky, 

 base of the lower mandible paler ; legs pale brown. Length 5-90 ; 

 wing 2-85 ; tail 2-80 ; culmen -50 ; tarsus -85. 



The sexes are alilie, the female averaging slightly smaller ; young 

 birds are very much like the adults but with greyish-white under-parts ; 

 autiman birds are browner and the markings more diffused. 



Distribution. — The Rocky Mountains region of the United States, 

 breeding from Oregon and Montana southwards to Colorado, further 

 south in winter to northern Mexico. 



In Colorado the Song-Sparrow is a faii-ly common resident, breeding 

 chiefly in the mountains at moderate elevations not exceeding 8,000 

 feet, while a fair number find winter-quarters in the foothills and at 

 lower levels in sheltered spots. Richards saw a flock of about a hundred 

 at Littleton near Denver on Christmas Day, and there are examples 

 from El Paso co. in the Aiken collection taken every month from 

 November to May. The migrants from the south arrive towards 

 the end of March, and fresh eggs can be found about the end 

 of May. 



Other localities are : Estes Park (Kellogg), Blue River, Summit co., 

 breeding at 7,000 feet, July 5th (Carter) ; Grand and Routt cos. (Warren), 

 Buena Vista, 7,960 feet (Keyser), Barr Lakes, summer and winter 

 (Hersey & Rockwell), South Park, breeding (Allen), Gunnison co., 

 eggs, June 20th (Warren), Pueblo (Beckham), Salida, breeding (Frey), 

 Fort Garland (Henshaw), Mesa co., common (Rockwell), and Fort 

 Lewis (Gilman). 



Habits. — ^^lore familiar perhaps in the east than in 

 the west, the Song-Sparrow is a tuneful bird, enlivening 

 the shrubbery and thicket with his cheerful note. In 

 Colorado it is chiefly found among the bushes and in 

 the meadows along the river valleys, and is not specially 

 common, at least near Colorado Springs. The nest 

 may be placed on the ground under the shelter of 

 a grass tuft or bush, or sometimes on a low branch 

 of a tree ; it is constructed of coarse grasses and 

 Uned with finer, and sometimes a few hairs ; the 



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