58 EVENING GROSBEAK. 



becoming quite black on the top of head, leaving forehead, 

 excepting anarroAY line at base of bill, clear yellow. Wings, 

 sooty brown, with a patch of soiled white on tertiaries and inner 

 secondaries. Upper tail coverts and tail, black. Female similar, 

 but with the top of head brownish, and the yellow is obscured 

 with ashy. Bill, greenish yellow. 



Dimensions. Length, 7.60; stretch, 13.50; wing, 4.45; 

 tail, 2.60; bill, .75 ; tarsus, .70. 



Comparisons. Readily known by the large size, heavy, 

 yellow bill, and general yellowish colors. 



General Habits. This species appears to be confined 

 during the breeding season to the region w^est of the Great 

 Plains, but ahvays wanders as far east in winter as Michigan, 

 and casualy in former years to New York. In 1890, however, 

 large numbers came to us from the westward and inundated 

 the whole of New England, excepting the more northern por- 

 tions. They were first seen on January 1st. at North Sud- 

 bury, Massachusetts, and continued numerous through Jan- 

 uary, February, and during the first week in March, then 

 their numbers began to abate, but some lingered through 

 April, the last specimen observed being on May 1st at Hen- 

 niker. New Hampshire. 



The Evening Grosbeaks being such peculiar birds, nat- 

 urally attracted considerable attention and many were taken. 

 They occurred in small flocks, consisting of from four, five or 

 six to a dozen individuals ; sometimes larger numbers were ob- 

 served, and then again solitary individuals and pairs were 

 seen. 



An influx of numbers of a species like the Evening Gros- 

 beak which is, as a rule, not a migratory bird, into a section 



