Field Sparrow. 149 



towhee enlivened the afternoon by its monotonous melody. 

 Along the road which bounded two sides of the pasture 

 was a telegraph line, and this wire was a favorite point 

 of view for the field sparrows. Perched on the wire, a 

 happy male would erect his head proudly and utter his 

 plaintive chant, retaining his place for many minutes, if 

 undisturbed, and repeating his varied ditty from time to 

 time, perhaps attempting to please his mate who sat in 

 her lowly home among the bushes. 



The nest of the field sparrow is placed low in the 

 bushes, generally less than a foot from the ground. It is 

 in the central portion of the bush, among upright stems. 

 Sometimes the nest is placed on the ground, among up- 

 right stems of weeds and grasses, and often in higher 

 situations, in hedges and other higher bushes. Low 

 bushes, less than three feet high, however, are preferred 

 for sites. When the nest is placed on the ground, it is 

 generally built at the foot of a protecting weed or stem, 

 or against a fallen branch. The nest is made externally 

 of dried grass, and usually it is lined with horse hair, but 

 sometimes the lining is merely a layer of finer grass. The 

 fact that both the field and the chipping sparrows use 

 horse hair in the construction of their nests has caused 

 them to be designated " hair bird," a title which is ap- 

 plied to either. The chippy, however, frequently con- 

 structs its home entirely of hair, while the field sparrow 

 commonly erects an outer wall of dried grass. The nest 

 of the field sparrow is a trifle larger than the home of the 

 chippy, and the eggs are altogether different. Most boys 

 and girls have seen the delicate bluish-green eggs of the 

 chippy, with their irregular markings of blackish-brown. 

 The eggs of the field sparrow have a greenish -white 

 ground, and they are marked irregularly with various 

 shades of brown. Davie says they average .68 by .52 of 

 an inch. In most instances at least two broods are reared 

 in this locality. I have found nests with fresh eggs in 

 the first half of July. Hereabout, the first nests generally 

 have their complements of eggs in the first week of May. 



The field sparrow is one of the chief victims of the cow- 

 bird in this region. I have found many nests in which 



