CAPE SABLE SPARROW 865 



to tho song of ^. m. sennetti at Copano Bay near Rockport, Tex., it 

 seemed very similar, but appeared to have an extra syllable, which I 

 wrote churr-ur-eee-e-e-e. 



The Cape Sable sparrow also has a flight song which I have often 

 heard. Howell (1932) describes it as "of longer duration and * * * 

 preceded by a sort of twittering chirrup." My observations have 

 been that the bird springs into the air, gives several rather excited 

 twittering notes in flight, then returns to a grass-top perch and gives 

 the regular song, churr-eee-e-e-e. 



Field marks. — Howell (1932) describes the bird as: "About the size 

 of Scott's Seaside, upper parts more greenish and underparts more 

 whitish than in any of the races of maritima; hind neck and back yel- 

 lowish olive, streaked with fuscous; scapulars edged with white; tail 

 fuscous, edged with citrine drab (olive drab); lores yellow; wings 

 fuscous, edged with olive; edge of wings yellow; underparts white, 

 moderately streaked on breast and sides with fuscous or mouse gray." 



As no other seaside sparrow has been taken within 150 miles of the 

 Cape Sable's range, the species with which the Cape Sable is most 

 likely to be confused is the shaip-tailed sparrow, which has an identical 

 flight pattern and is only slightly smaller and browner. The Savannah 

 sparrow, swamp sparrow, and grasshopper sparrow also occur com- 

 monly in the same marshes during the fall, winter and spring. 



For positive field or sight identification I prefer to see a singing bird. 

 The Cape Sable's habit in winter of dropping immediately back into 

 the grass on being flushed makes it extremely hard to identify by sight. 

 Unless the bu"d flushes very close with the sun shining directly on its 

 back making the greenish cast plainly visible, I simply refuse to 

 identify it as a Cape Sable sparrow. 



The difficulty of identifying Cape Sables by sight in winter is 

 attested by the many sight records of the species reported from the 

 Cape Sable marshes since the 1935 hurricane. That these reports 

 were based on misidentifications is strongly suggested by the fact 

 that no Cape Sable sparrow has been reported from that area since 

 then during the period from May 15 to August 1, when no other 

 sparrow would be present and the Cape Sable, if present, would be in 

 song and easily found and recognized. 



Enemies. — Although a number of natm'al enemies of ground-nesting 

 birds are plentiful in its habitat— raccoons and several species of 

 snakes for instance, which surely destroy some eggs and nestlings — no 

 preying on the Cape Sable sparrow has been reported. Its chief foes 

 today are hurricanes, droughts, fires, and man's alterations of its 

 habitat, chiefly by drainage. 



Hurricanes have been striking southern Florida periodically in tho 

 late summer and fall for centuries. Their high winds and flood tides 



