SNOWLAKE AXD CROSSBILL. 147 



With the Tree Sparrows and Jtmcos, Redpolls feed on 

 the seeds of plants left uncovered by the snow, and they 

 also include birch bnds in their fare. 



None of our winter birds better illustrate the flock- 

 ing habit than the Snowflakes, Snow Buntings, or, as they 



Snowflake, are a ^ so called, White Snowbirds. With 



Pkc&rophmax nivalis, a uniformity of movement which would 

 riate l. p Ut to s ] iame the evolutions of the best- 



drilled troops, they whirl over the snow-clad fields, wheel- 

 ing to right or left, as though governed by a single 

 impulse. Suddenly they swing downward into a weedy 

 field, alighting on the snow or ground, where they run — 

 not hop about — like little beach birds. Sometimes, it is 

 said, they sing on the wing while with us, but their usual 

 note is a low chirp. They are terrestrial birds, and, al- 

 though they may often perch on fences or buildings, are 

 rarely seen in trees. 



Snowflakes nest within the Arctic Circle, and, like 

 other of our winter birds that come from the far North, 

 are irregular in their movements. As a rule they do not 

 wander much south of Long Island and northern Illinois, 

 but occasionally they go as far as Virginia and Kansas, 

 and are thus among the possibilities which add so much 

 to the pleasure of winter days in the field. 



The Crossbill is a possibility at any season. None of 



our birds is more erratic in its migrations. As a rule, it 



_ . .„ is found in the Middle States only be- 



Amencan Crossbill, ^ 



Loxia vurviroetra tween November and March, but 1 

 minor. l iave geen it in Central Park, New 



Plate LI. York dt .^ ag kte ag May> In the 



higher parts of the Alleghanies and in northern New 

 England it is resident throughout the year. Crossbills 

 usually wander as tar south each winter as Connecticut, 

 but beyond this are of irregular occurrence. 



They feed almost entirely upon the seeds of pines, and 



