FINCHES 



25 



This is a songless Sparrow which occurs, dur- 

 ing its migration, on the beaches along the Atlan- 

 tic and Gulf coasts from Sable Island, Nova 

 Scotia, where it breeds, to Georgia. It is most 

 likely to be found skulking in the beach-grass, 

 generally quite near the ocean. In such sur- 

 roundings it seems to have been first discovered 

 near Ipswich, Mass., in 1868, and thereafter for 

 several years was confounded with Baird's Spar- 

 row {Ainiiiodrainiis bainli), a western form, 

 which it only very slightly resembles. It is very 

 timid and when flushed is likely to flv rapidly for 

 a considerable distance, then plunge down into 

 the grass and continue its retreat by running for 

 perhaps fifty yards, so that it is difficult to see 

 the bird a second time. Its associates frequentlv 

 are Horned Larks, from which it may easily be 

 distinguished, but it somewhat resembles the 



larger light-colored Savannah .Sparrow. Its 

 single note, only occasionally uttered, is a faint 



The Ipswich Sparrow is a very rare bird and 

 this fact, added to its exceedingly limited range, 

 prevents it from having any appreciable impor- 

 tance. Grass seed, particularly in winter, forms 

 the staple diet. Lambs-quarters, different polyg- 

 onums, and dock are also taken. The fruit ele- 

 ment consists of bayberries, bkieberries, and 

 bunchberries. The animal food is made up of 

 beetles, wasp-like insects, bugs, caterpillars, flies, 

 spiders, and snails. In June the most common 

 article of diet is the little dung-beetle. Tiger 

 beetles are also eaten, a rather unusual element 

 of Sparrow fare, but due. probably, to the abun- 

 dance of these active insects ujjon the sand dunes 

 which the bird frequents. 



SAVANNAH SPARROW 

 Passerculus sandwichensis savanna {IVilson) 



Other Names. — Ground Sparrow; Field Sparrow 

 (incorrect): Ground-bird; Savannah Fiunting. 



General Description. — Length. 6 inches. Upper 

 parts, grayish-brown; under parts, white; streaked 

 above and below with black. Bill, small; wings, long 

 and pointed; tail, about ^i length of wing, and notched. 



Color. — Adults : Above, grayish-brown, conspicu- 

 ously streaked with black, the broad black streaks on 

 back and shoulders edged with narrower dull whitish 

 or light buffy-grayish ; streaks; croivn, zvith a median 

 narrow stripe of pale grayish or buffy-grayish streaks; 

 a broad stripe of yellowish over the eye. more decidedly 

 yellow in the front ; wings, light brownish with dusky 

 centers to the feathers ; tail, dusky grayish-brown, the 

 feathers edged with pale grayish but without any white 

 on inner webs; ear and under eye regions light brown- 

 ish-gray or dull grayish-buffy. margined above and 

 below by blackish streaks ; a broad white or pale buffy 

 stripe on the cheek; under parts, white (sometimes. 



especially in fall and winter |iluniage. tinged with 

 buffy on chest and sides) with sides of throat, chest, 

 sides, and flanks conspicuously streaked with blackish, 

 the streaks on chest wedge-shaped, those on throat 

 coalesced into a stripe. 



Nest and Eggs. — Xest: Level with ground, gen- 

 erally well concealed in tall grass or tussock ; a sparse 

 collection of grass and weed stalks; lined or not. 

 E(;(..s : 4 or 5, ground color varying from bluish-white 

 to grayish-white, spotted, speckled, and blotched with 

 brown and lavender, sometimes so thickly as to be 

 obscured. 



Distribution. — Eastern Xorth .\merica; breeding 

 from Connecticut, Pennsylvania (Bradford, Crawford, 

 Clinton, Elk, and Erie counties). Ontario, northwestern 

 Indiana (Calumet, P^nglish, and Wolf Lakes), etc., 

 northward to Ungava (Fort Chimo), western side of 

 Hudson Bay, etc.; migrating south ni winter to Gulf 

 coast, Bahamas, and Cuba; casual in Bermudas. 



The Aleutian Savannah .Sparrow or Sandwich 

 Sparrow (Passerculus saiidn'ichnisis saiidicich- 

 ciisis) is the typical bird of this species. lie 

 breeds on LInalaska Island anrl in the winter 

 comes east and south along the coast to British 

 Columbia and occasionally to northern Califor- 

 nia. The san(i7vichcusis part of his scientific 

 name refers to his being first found on Sandwich 

 Island in the .Meutians bv a Russian. The better 



known member of this family, however, is the 

 .Savannah Sparrow. 



The peculiarity of this otherwise rather com- 

 monjilace bird is its habit of singing from the 

 ground. This is very unusual with birds which 

 have any song at all ; for though the habit of 

 singing from a more or less cons])icuous perch 

 is clearly an inherently dangerous one, since it 

 nnist have the effect of attracting the notice of the 



