SNOW BUNTING. 145 
air, the snowbirds, undulating between the white 
earth and sky, seem like wandering spirits that 
are a part of the all-pervading whiteness. Tho- 
reau says, “they are the true spirits of the snow- 
storm. They are the animated beings that ride 
upon it and have their life in it.” 
Mr. Allen, in speaking of our winter birds, 
says: “ The beautiful snow buntings when whirl- 
‘ing from field to field in compact flocks, their 
white wings glistening in the sunlight, form one 
of the most attractive sights of winter.” He adds 
that they are the “bad weather birds” of the su- 
perstitious, as they usually appear mysteriously 
during snowstorms and disappear in the weeks 
of fine weather. He says: ‘Cold, half-arctiec 
countries being their chosen home, they only 
favor us with their presence during those short. 
intervals when their food in the northern fields 
is too deeply buried ; and being strong of wing 
and exceedingly rapid in flight, they can in a few 
hours leave the plain for the mountain, or migrate 
hundreds of miles to the northward.” 
Late in December I have seen a flock of them 
flying over the meadows with the rhythmical un- 
dulating motion of their cousins the goldfinches, 
twittering ter-ra-lee, ter-ra-lee, ter-ra-lee as they 
went. Now and then they would light for a mo- 
ment to pick at the seeds appearing above the 
snow, but soon they swept on toward the north. 
