BIRDS OF KANSAS. 465 



family) is procured chiefly from off the ground. They perch in 

 bushes and on the lower branches of trees, rarely mounting in- 

 to the tree tops. Their flights are low, short, and rather undu- 

 lating. Their song is not powerful, but varied, plaintive and 

 sweet; it is kept up until late in the autumn, and is often heard 

 during the middle of the day, when most of our songsters are 

 silent. 



Their nests are placed on the ground, also in bushes and low 

 trees; usually on the ground on uplands, and in trees and bushes 

 on low, bottom lands; loosely constructed of weeds and grasses, 

 and lined with hairs and small thread-like stems of plants. Eggs 

 three to five, .09x.52; grayish to greenish white, and, as a rule, 

 finely and evenly spotted with reddish brown; in form, oval. 



Genus JUNCO Wagler. 



"Bill small, conical; culmeii curved at the tip; the lower jaw quite as high 

 as the upper. Tarsus longer than the middle toe; outer toe longer than the in- 

 ner-, barely reaching to the base of the middle claw; hind toe reaching as far as 

 the middle of the latter; extended toes reaching about to the middle of the tall. 

 Wings ratiier short; reaching over the basal fourth of the exposed surface of 

 the tail; primaries, however, considerably longer than the secondaries and ter- 

 tials, which are nearly equal. The second quill longest, the third to fifth suc- 

 cessively but little shorter; first longer than sixth, much exceeding secondaries. 

 Tail moderate, a little shorter than wings; slightly emarginated and rounded. 

 Feathers rather narrow; oval at the end. No streaks on the head or body; col- 

 ors above uniform on the head, back, or rump, separately or on all together. 

 Belly white; outer tail feathers white. Young birds streaked above and below. 



"The essential characters of this genus are, the middle toe rather shorter 

 than the short tarsus; the lateral toes slightly unequal, the outer reaching the 

 base of the middle claw; the tail a little shorter than the winsjs, slightly emar- 

 ginate. In Jwico eiiiereus dorsalis the claws are longer; the lower mandible a 

 little lower than the upper." 



Junco aikeni Eidgw. 



WHITE- WINGED JUNCO. 



A rare winter visitant in the western to middle portion of the 

 State. 



B. . K. 216. C. 263. G. 110, 231. U. 566. 



Habitat. Rocky Mountains in Colorado and Wyoming, strag- 

 gling east in winter to middle Kansas and the Indian Territory. 



Sp. Char. "Generally similar to J. hyemaUs, but considerably larger, with 

 more robust bill; two white bands on the wing, and three, instead of two, outer 

 tail feathers entirely white. 



—30 



