982 U.S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 237 part 2 



In New Mexico, Florence M. Bailey (1928) notes that "Although 

 found sometimes in the tall grass and in meadowy tracts around 

 springs, colonies of the sandy Cassin Sparrow are most numerous on 

 dry plains with a growth of short grass interspersed with small shrubs 

 and bushes. They are also seen on the mesquite plains in yucca 

 patches * * *, 



In the only record of Cassin's sparrow occurring in a cultivated 

 area, Margaret M. and Leonard B. Nice (1922) observed four birds 

 "in alfalfa fields about Kenton, Oklahoma," May 30 to June 2, 1922. 

 John C. Johnson, Jr. (1956) encountered three singing males along 

 a fence row and among abandoned oil weU equipment in an area of 

 approximately two acres in the moderately overgrazed open prairie 

 two mUes north of Norman, Okla. N. S. Goss (1891) reports that in 

 Kansas this sparrow "frequents the barren spots and sandy lands, 

 dotted here and there with low, stunted bushes, bunch grass or cactus." 



Cassin's sparrow occasionally occurs in or near moimtainous areas. 

 The southern slopes of the Davis Mountains in Trans-Pecos, Texas, 

 are treeless, grassy plains, with a few scattered yuccas of various 

 species. A road traverses these plains for about 15 miles. Along 

 this road 27 singing Cassin's sparrows were counted one July day. 

 About a mile high in the Davis Mountains are open meadows with 

 oaks on the surrounding slopes; this species occurs in the open 

 meadows. It has been found as high as 4,000 feet on the mesa that 

 surrounds the Chisos Mountains. J. Van Tyne and G. M. Sutton 

 (1937) collected it in the foothills of the Santiago Mountains, as well 

 as in the Glass Mountains of western Texas. The vegetation in all 

 these areas consists of widely spaced bushes interspersed with grass. 

 Florence M. Bailey (1928) found it "in the foothills of Mount Capitan 

 to the lower edge of the juniper belt at about 5,500 feet * * * . 



"A single specimen was taken in the fall of 1883 near WUlis [New 

 Mexico] at 7,800 feet (Henshaw), where it was, of course, a straggler." 



All these descriptions of the Cassin's sparrow's habitat have one 

 thing other than "open grasslands" in common; each mentions the 

 presence of small shrubs, bushes, or yuccas. The birds use these as 

 singing perches. The species does not usually inhabit areas that are 

 entirely grass, unless the field is surrounded by a fence where the 

 birds may perch. Although these fringillids are noted for their 

 flight songs, they do not rise from the ground to sing, but rather launch 

 themselves into the air from the highest perch available. 



J. Stokley Ligon (1961) and Allan R. Phillips (1944) report that 

 in New Mexico and Arizona these sparrows are more common in wet 

 seasons than in dry ones. The reverse is true in the Panhandle 

 and southern plains of western Texas. 



