1384 U.S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 237 i'art 3 



normal songs, quite variable in pitch, and often included upslurs and 

 downslurs. Some were pure and others were made up of two tones a 

 few hundred cycles apart. Various call notes accompanied these 

 warblings. Subsongs of this t} r pe are heard preceding and, to a lesser 

 extent, following the breeding season. 



Carl Helms writes (in litt.) that he has heard subsongs given by 

 young and adults during extreme fright. It is not clear whether this 

 refers to the type of subsong described above. He also states that 

 low intensity singing occurs at all periods of the annual cycle and at 

 all times of day. Again it is not clear whether this refers to subsong 

 or to a quiet version of territorial song. We have heard the latter 

 from males responding to recorded songs near the boundaries of their 

 territories. 



The white-throated sparrow has several distinct call notes. Some of 

 these are high pitched notes lasting half a second or more. Most 

 commonly heard is the "tseet" (about 8,000 cps) which both sexes 

 give when resting or feeding in migration or on the breeding grounds. 

 It is usually heard when the birds are visually isolated from one 

 another on or near the ground, and appears to be a contact note 

 although it is hard to locate. As it is often heard when the birds 

 are disturbed, it may also serve as a mild warning. 



Carl Helms (in litt.) reports hearing similar notes from captive 

 birds. One of these was a "peep" or "tsee" uttered softly by a female 

 after the male's songs. Jack Hailman (in litt.) describes two other 

 high pitched notes as "eeek" and "eeeee." He refers to them as 

 "fear notes," the latter sound being an extreme alarm note or warning 

 of the presence of a predator. 



Another sort of note given by white-throats is shorter with the 

 initial consonant hardened. Notes of this type vary from a quiet 

 "tip," which includes a narrow range of frequencies near 8,000 cps 

 and is difficult to locate, through a series of chipping sounds to a loud 

 "pink" which covers a wider range of frequencies and is easily located. 

 The authors have heard the "tip" from both sexes when perched in 

 dense cover and when there was reason to believe that young were 

 in the vicinity. On two occasions blue jays were disturbing the birds. 

 This note may be given alternately with the "pink" note. 



The louder chipping or "pink" notes are also given by both sexes 

 and appear to serve as contact notes, or to express various kinds of 

 excitement or alarm, for they vary considerably in intensity. "Pink" 

 notes are often given when a flock is disturbed or going to roost in 

 dense cover. The most intense notes of this type are heard during 

 agonistic encounters or from the parents when young are disturbed or 

 giving distress calls. These sounds are often accompanied by crest 

 raising and vertical tail flicking. 



