18 THE AVILSON QUARTERLY. 



liown far away southward to remain till the hright, joy- 

 ous Spring succeeds the reign of " King Winter," there 

 comes a flock of little birds from many miles to the north- 

 ward, to our yards, gardens, and fields, singing their sweet 

 little melodies, their calls sounding cheerfully over the keen 

 frosty air. 



The Tree, or Canada Sparrow, breeds above the boundary 

 of our country, spending the last part of the fall, winter, 

 and early spring in eastern North America. In appearance 

 this bird is much like the Chipping Sparrow, but as the last 

 named is not a winter resident you are not liable to get the 

 two species confounded. A reddish-brown crown, inore or 

 less dusky in the center of the breast, and shades of yellow. 

 brown, and gray constitute the colors of our Canadian 

 visitor. 



The little Tree Sparrow is fond of sheltered glens where 

 food is plent}', where the sun strikes the warmest ; here you 

 may find them in flocks and squads feeding on the scatteied 

 seeds which they can find, allowing you to approach very 

 near without inciting to flight, for this sparrow is not 

 classed amongst the shy birds. No matter how cold it may 

 be he seems always cheerful. Sitting close to a limb with 

 the feathers fluffed up, is a position we see. him in often 

 when it is very cold. The best time to observe these birds 

 is generally in the morning when the largest number are to- 

 gether, for later in the day they break up into squads, each 

 party feeding by itself. The Tree Sparrow, as far as I know, 

 has a peaceable character, attending to his own business, 

 which employs all his time, without interfering with other 

 birds' rights and movements. 



A flock of these sparrows numbering about two hundred 

 spent the past winter in my locality giving me ample 

 means to study their songs and movements ; but this is the 

 first visit they have made to this vicinity as far as I can 

 find out. 



The song of the Canada Sparrow is superior to that of 

 any of our local Sparrows ; most of the songs, heard by the 

 writer were in the morning between seven and ten. Why 



