40 THE BIRDS OF 



strongly with his red breast, and when 

 perched, all his colors stand out splen- 

 didly against the green foliage. How 

 proudly he sits, singing his clear melody 

 to his nearby mate, who is brooding on 

 a set of blue eggs marked with brown. 

 She is streaked with brown, and when 

 on the nest is practically invisible. The 

 male often incubates and notwithstand- 

 ing his bright colors he is not conspicu- 

 ous, as he sits low and all that shows is 

 his black back. 



Sparrows, Finches, Towhee and Junco 



The White-throated Sparrow comes 

 to us in September and stays until the 

 next May. Its song is a clear whistle. 

 With the exception of the Junco this 

 is the most common bird of its family 

 in the winter. It is streaked brown 

 above and gray below, with a white 

 throat colored on both sides by yellow 



