PLECTROPHANES NIVALIS, SNOW BUNTING. 119 



oesophagus, to all intents and purposes a true crop. I am familiar with 

 the appearance presented by the capacious and distensible gullets of 

 birds of the genus Chrysomifris, when full of seeds; but this appears 

 altogether diiferent. Happening to be skinning some Sharp-tailed 

 Grouse at the same time, it struck me that the Snow-bird had the pro- 

 portionally larger crop of the two. In six or eight individuals exam- 

 ined, this organ always lay completely to the right side, partly in the 

 depression between the one of the legs of the furcula, but mostly pro- 

 tuberant ; it pushed out so far, when completely distended, as to make the 

 contour of the bird outside the feathers noticeably unsymmetrical. It 

 is capable of holding a fair tea-spoonful of seeds. At this season the 

 bill is yellowish, usually black-tipped, instead of entirely black ; it dries 

 to a brownish sliade. Warm brown clouds all, or nearly all, the upper 

 parts ; mixes with black of the back ; it is darkest on the crown, where 

 often quite blackish ; usually forms a marked auricular patch and pecto- 

 ral collar, with more or less wash along the sides, leaving the rest of the 

 under parts white. Specimens of course vary interminably in amount 

 of brown clouding, but the pattern just mentioned, or a tendency to 

 form such a pattern, may almost invariably be seen. 



The general southward dispersion of the species in winter may be 

 gathered from the above. Of its breeding in the United States I have 

 found but two records. One is that given by Audubon (p. 56). He 

 says a nest was found on a declivity in the ^Yhite Mountains of New 

 Hampshire, in July, 1831 ; it was described to him as being fixed on 

 the ground among low bushes, and formed like that of the Song Spar- 

 row's ; and that it contained > oung. Mr. Allen, on the authority of Mr. 

 C. W. Bennett, says that a pair spent the summer of 1862, and reared 

 their young, at Springfield, Massachusetts. 



At Fort Kandall, the birds disappeared during some open weather 

 early in March, but came back with a severe snow storm some weeks 

 afterward, and were seen until April. They occasionally alight in troops 

 on the roofs of sheds and houses, or string along fences. I have but 

 rarely seen them on trees. When in this position they do not seem to 

 be easy or even comfortable. They sit still, apparently busy balancing ; 

 on attempting to change their position they move awkwardly, seem- 

 ingly as if afraid they would fall, putting one foot down after the other, 

 and recovering a lapse with a flutter of the wings. Their feet evidently 

 do not grasp small twigs with security. 



The few nests of the Snow-flake I have seen were built with a great 

 quantity of a kind of short curly grass which grows in the Arctic 

 regions, mixed with moss, the whole forming a very substantial struc- 

 ture, with walls an inch or more thick, and a small, deep cavity. This 

 is warmly lined with a quantity of large feathers, from some water- 

 fowl. They are built on the ground, often covered and hidden by tus- 

 socks of grass or even slabs of rock. The eggs are exceedingly variable 

 ■ in coloiation as well as size. Thus, one measures 0.05 by 0.70, and another 

 0.97 by 0.02 ; an average is about 0.90 by 0.05. The ground is white or 

 whitish, in some instances flecked all over with neutral tint shell- 

 markings, overlaid by deep brown spots and scratches, esi>ecially at 

 the butt. In otber cases the former are wanting and we have a heavy 

 wreath of confluent blotches of dull brown around the larger end ; and 

 again the whole surface may bo obscurely mottled with pale chocolate. 



