EVENING GROSBEAK. 293 



some feeding and talking quietly to their companions, while others 

 were down on the sandy shore, pecking gravel or dabbling themselves 

 in the water. It was a clear, bright day, and they made a picture I 

 would have travelled many miles to see ; but there they were within a 

 mile of my own residence, and my visit to them was repeated every 

 day for over a month. I thought at first that the original flock had 

 I'emained, but soon found that an easterly migration was going on, 

 and that as one flock left another arrived, so that some were always 

 present when the locality was visited, within the period named. 



During Februar}', few, if any, were observed here. In March, the 

 return trip commenced, but was in all respects diflferent from the 

 easterly one. The birds were then fewer in number, and all seemed 

 excited and desirous to go west with the least possible delay. Their 

 food in this locality was pretty well exhausted, and they took any 

 apples that still remained on the trees, using the seeds only. Small 

 groups of four or five were seen going west till the middle of April, 

 1890, l)ut since that time not one has been observed in this neigh- 

 borhood. 



The home of the Evening Grosbeak is in the coniferous forests of 

 the North- West, though it has been found among the mountain tops 

 as far south as Mexico. The first record we have of its capture is 

 that of a specimen taken by Schoolcraft, in 1823, near Sault Ste. 

 Marie. So much of its time is spent beyond the limits of civilization, 

 that even now we are but little acquainted with its life history. It 

 is known to be migratory, its usual route to the south being along 

 the line of the Mississippi, but it is very irregular, often appearing at 

 certain points one season where it may not again be seen for several 

 years. Single birds and small groups have been observed in Canada 

 for some years past, but never has it been known to make such an 

 invasion as it did during the winter of 1889-90, already i^eferred to. 

 It is at all times difticult to account for the seeming irregularities 

 which occasionally occur in the movements of the birds. The first 

 flocks which start on the migratory journey take a course that 

 the others visually follow, and if we knew just where the start was 

 made, and under what circumstances, we might possibly be able to 

 explain why the Grosbeaks came so far east of their usual limit as 

 on the occasion mentioned. 



It is quite possible that a strong west wind caused the leaders to 

 diverge from their usual course till they found themselves east of 

 Lake Superior, which they would not cross, but kept on along the 

 eastern shore of Lake Huron till about opposite Detroit, where they 



