LINCOLN'S SPARROW 1455 



high. As a full song lasts from two to three seconds, the birds are 

 silent about 90 per cent of the time, even during an active singing 

 period. 



Singing shows marked seasonal and daily variations in amount. 

 Birds are seldom heard singing during migration, and we have no rec- 

 ord of their singing in winter. Even when they first arrive in breed- 

 ing territory, they may be silent for several days if the weather stays 

 cloudy and cold. At Dorion we noted that there was little singing 

 on cold or rainy or windy mornings but a good deal on sunny, calm, 

 warm mornings. 



At Dorion, the birds sang at all times of day, but we never heard 

 them after dark. J. Satterly, however, writes us in a letter: "This 

 species begins to sing very early in the morning long before sunrise, 

 probably as early as 2 a.m." His observations were made in Michaud 

 Township, Cochrane District, Ont., in 1946. T. M. Shortt told us 

 in conversation that at Fraserdale, Cochrane District, Ont., all the 

 Lincoln's sparrows burst into song as the sky clouded over. Then 

 as the sun came out all the singing ceased, to commence again as 

 clouds darkened the sky. Lester L. Snyder confirmed this 

 observation. 



We found that singing practically ceased during the incubation 

 period except for a few songs early in the morning, then increased 

 again greatly when the young were about to leave the nest. 



When singing ceased we generally found the birds by tracking 

 down their rather faint, scolding "tit — tit — tit," notes often uttered 

 from a low perch in spruce saplings, or in alders, or grassy under- 

 growth by both male and female. It somewhat resembles the chip- 

 ping sparrow's scold notes but lacks the "s" sound of the chipping 

 sparrow's "tsick." 



We have mentioned in other sections the special "dzeee-dzeee" 

 note the female utters with fluttering wings and squatting position 

 when inviting copulation. One conversational greeting when a pair 

 met under a small sheltering spruce we transliterated as "zu-zu-zu-zu" 

 (u as in tut, not as in toot). This apparently was an excitement note 

 of lesser intensity than the "zeee" note inviting mating. 



Behavior. — We removed the 1957 nestlings from day to day to 

 weigh them and make notes on their plumage development. When 

 handled on June 18 when 1 and 2 days old they gaped as if to be fed. 

 On June 21 at 4 and 5 days of age they uttered a complaining "zeeee" 

 when taken from the nest. The following day they really squealed 

 when picked up. On June 23, now 6 and 7 days old, when the mother 

 arrived at the nest to feed them they uttered a high-pitched "zizz'zizz," 

 and for the first time they made feeble efforts to scramble out of the 

 dish in which we weighed them. On June 25 at 8 and 9 days they 



