526 MICHIGAN BIRD LIFE. 



TECHNICAL DESCRIPTION. 



Adult (sexes alike) : Top of head and back of neck brownish-gray or clear dark gray, 

 usually more or less mixed with rusty on the tips of the feathers; back and scapulars similar, 

 but more broadly and heavily streaked with dark reddish-brown or chestnut; upper tail- 

 covcrts and upper surface of tail bright reddish-brown or chestnut; a whitish line from 

 nostril to eye, sometimes continued over it to nape; another whitish line from base 

 of lower mandible along lower edge of ear-coverts, separating these (which are reddish- 

 brown) from a red-brown stripe which borders the throat; chin, throat and belly usually 

 white or rusty white and without spots, except sometimes a few small ones on tlie throat; 

 chest heavily spotted and sides and flanks broadly streaked with bright rufous or chestnut, 

 the spots usually arrow-shaped and often bunched on the middle of the chest, forming a 

 conspicuous spot or patch; usually the lower breast shows a belt of smaller and blackish 

 spots with little or no rufous in them; upper surface of wings and coverts mainly bright 

 rusty or chestnut, the greater and middle coverts often slightly tipped with white or rusty 

 white, forming two more or less perfect wing-bars; basal half of lower mandible yellowish, 

 rest of bill dusky; iris l)rown. Young: Scarcely different from adults. Length ().20 to 

 7. .50 inches; wing 3.80 to 3.70; tail 2.80 to 3.15; culmen .43 to .47. 



239. Chewink. Pipilo erjrthropthalmus erythropthalmus (Linn.). (587) 



Synonyms: Towhee, Ground Roliin, Swamp Robin, Towliee Hunting, Jo-ree. — Fringilla 

 erythropthalma, Linn., 1758, Bonnp., Nutt., Aud. — Pi])ilo erythrophthalnuis, .I.-inUne, 

 1832, and most recent authors. 



Plate LIII and Figure 120. 



Male mainly black above, with white patches in wings and tail; throat 

 and upper breast black, belly white, sides chestnut or rusty-red. Female 

 similar except that the black is entirely replaced by brown. The outoi' 

 three or four pairs of tail feathers have large white "thumb-maiks" wliich 

 are very conspicuous as the bird flits from bush to bush. 



Distribution. — Eastern LTnited States and southern Canada, west to the 

 Plains, breeding from the Lower Mississippi Valley and (ieorgia 

 noi'thward; in winter from the middle districts southward. 



The Chewink is an abundant summer resident over most of the Lower 

 Peninsula, but less common in the northernmost counties. Thus- it is far 

 from common about Little Traverse Bay in Emmet county, 

 and S. Vj. White found a pair one season only on Mackinac 

 Island. On the other hand it seems to be very abundant 

 in Kalkaska, Crawford, and Otsego counties, in the highest 

 parts of the Lower Peninsula. In the Upper Peninsula j^^,, oj-^'he^vrnk 

 it seems to be generally distributed but not common, 

 most observers calling it rare, although it has been recorded from nearly 

 all parts except Keweenaw Point and Isle Royale. Mi-. T. B. Wyman 

 of Negaunee, Marquette county, calls it "Common everywhere in cutovei' 

 lands." Boies says it is rare on Neebish Island, l)ut common on the 

 adjacent mainland (Chipi)ewa county). 



In the southern part of the state a few bii'ds occasionally winter. We 

 have such records from Muskegon (Van Pelt), Ann Arbor (Covert and 

 Wolcott), Plymouth (Purdy), Grand Rapids (February 22, Cole), (Jenesee 

 county (November 24, Swales), Lansing {Vj. 1). Sanderson, C. .1. Davis). 

 Ordinarily it arrives from the south about the end of March, Swales lecord- 

 ing it first near Detroit March 16, 1894, while his latest record there is 

 November 3, 1891. At Kalamazoo spring arrivals range from March 9, 

 1878 to April 12, 189.3, while at Lansing it usually aj^pears between March 

 25 and April 5, and nearly a month later along the Lake Superior shore. 



