TOWHEE. 71 



Eggs four or five in number, rather elliptical in form, ashy 

 white in color, spotted, dotted and blotched with reddish 

 brown and lilac. Dimensions, .90 by .70. 



General Habits. The well known and well marked 

 Tovfhee arrives from the south about the first of May, and 

 frequents brushy pastures or thickets on the borders of wood- 

 lands and extends its range throughout New England, but 

 is rather locally distributed through the older settled dis- 

 tricts of the northern portions. The Towhees spend a greater 

 portion of their time upon the ground, scratching among the 

 leaves in search of food, and are not shy if approached with 

 moderate caution. On account of this habit of feeding on the 

 ground, these birds are sometimes called Ground Robins. 



They breed about the middle of May, often placing the 

 the nest in a clump of bushes, and the female sits quite close- 

 ly, and I have often managed to get within a few feet of her 

 before she left the eggs. 



So NG. If the Towhee were less well marked, it could be 

 readily recognized by its alarm notes, for when disturbed, it 

 constantly reiterates its name of" towhee" given very de- 

 cidedly with the accent on the last syllable. This note is 

 is oftentimes interpreted as being chewink, and this name is 

 sometimes applied to the bird. In addition to this note, which 

 is common to both sexes, the males sing a loud, clear, but 

 somewhat detatched song. This is given as the bird sits 

 perched upon some elevated situation, generally the highest 

 tree which he can find in the neiorhborhood of the nest. 



