LARK SPARROW 889 



she becomes receptive to him, I watched one pair make 20 attempts 

 at copulation within 3% minutes before it was consummated. 



E. H. M. Knowles (1938) presents an interesting account of polyg- 

 amy in this species near Regina, Saskatchewan. "On May 24, 1937, 

 I again located a nest and on May 28, 1937, a second nest at least 

 one hundred yards distant from it. On the latter date I saw the male 

 and female copulating about twenty feet from nest no. 1, and was 

 surprised to see a second female with wings quivering, fly close to 

 the pair. The male then commenced to copulate alternately with 

 the two females. This was accomplished several times and one of 

 the females then flew to nest no. 1, while the other, when disturbed, 

 flew immediately to nest no. 2, the site of which was clearly \asible 

 from where I was standing." Perhaps the scarcity of bu'ds at the 

 edge of the species' range encourages polygamy, which I never 

 observed where the sparrows are plentiful in southern Oklahoma. 



Nesting. — Both the male and the female share in selecting the nest 

 site. The two birds fly about examining hkely spots on the ground 

 or in small shrubs and trees. The male usuaUy picks up a small 

 twig or straw, carries it for a short time, and then deposits it at a 

 suitable site. Often he drops material at a number of different places 

 before the female selects the actual spot where she will build. As 

 she gathers material the male either perches nearby and sings, or 

 flies with her. Sometimes he carries a straw back and forth in his 

 bill for a number of trips before he discards it. I never saw a male 

 add material to the nest. 



The nest site varies considerably. Florence M. Bailey (1928) 

 states that in New Mexico the birds usually nest on the ground, but 

 "sometimes in bushes, mesquite, or mistletoe." Merritt Gary (1901) 

 found nests only on the ground in Wyoming. J. M. Markle (1946) 

 reports finding 28 nests in crevices of cliffs in California at heights 

 of 5 to 10 feet above the ground. At the Biological Station in southern 

 Oklahoma, the birds often built in the ornamental evergreens near 

 the buildings, placing their nests surprisingly close together. Two 

 were 23 yards apart, a third was 26 yards from them, and within 

 60 yards of these, there were four more occupied nests. Several 

 nests were on the lawn, in small depressions hollowed out in bare 

 spots free of grass, usually in the shade of a broad-leafed plant such 

 as a mullein. 



At Lake Texoma the birds nested in low trees and shrubs or on 

 the ground in pastures, lawns, abandoned fields, and active cotton 

 fields. Among the favorite trees were red cedar (Juniperus vir- 

 ginianus), post oak (Quercus stellata), winged elm {Ulmus alata), 

 chittamwood (Bumelia lanuginosa) , persiDxinon (Diospyros virginiana), 

 and osage orange {Maclura pomijera). Most nests were within 7 



