508 GEOLOGICAL SURVEY OF CANADA. 
April 30th, 1894; quite common in scrub along the river and 
creeks by May sth; a few found breeding at Crane Lake, but 
especially along Skull Creek; in the Cypress Hills, at the last of 
June; they were quite common along the willow thickets bordering 
the small creeks forming Swift Current Creek. This species is 
always by water, and wherever there is water and brush. We 
found it from Old Wives’ Creek to Wood Mountain and west to 
Frenchman’s River, and by all the creeks issuing from the 
Cypress Hills. Many nests were found on the ground, generally 
beneath willows. A few individuals were seen in the Milk River 
valley at Castellated Rocks, Alberta, also on the West Butte, on 
the goth parallel, and at Lee’s Creek farther west; very rare at 
Banff in the Rocky Mountains, breeding in the bushes in the 
marsh below ‘the Cave and Basin” in June, 1891; first observed 
one April 20th, at Edmonton, Alta.; found a nest May 26th and 
another May 27th with five eggs; nests, on the ground, composed 
of dry grass, lined with a little horse hair; common south in the 
foothills to Crow’s Nest Pass; common from mouth of Lesser 
Slave River to Peace River Landing Lat. 56° 15’ in June, 1903; 
common from Edmonton to the crossing of McLeod’s River,north 
of Edmonton in June, 1898. (Spreadborough.) 
BREEDING NotTes.—A common breeding bird around Ottawa. 
Nest in a low bush, or tuft of grass, or on the ground; built of 
grass, rootlets and vegetable matter, lined with grass and hair. 
Eggs four, greenish or grayish white spotted with brown, choco- 
late and lavender. (G. &. White.) Breeding in May, June and 
July, and occasionally in August in New Brunswick. I would 
not be surprised if some specialist were to divide our song spar- 
rows into two races. There is certainly a difference in the songs 
of those in different localities, a great difference in their eggs 
and the location of the nest. (W. H. Moore.) -Some of the nests 
are on the ground or sunken in the ground, also in the midst of 
heaps of dead branches or covered by tufts of tall grass in the 
fields or by reeds inthe marshes. Others are built in bushes or in 
small trees to a height of ten feet, and many on the lower 
branches of large conifers. A few are found in holes of trees or 
in logs in fences. The materials used are grasses, bark and 
leaves with finer grass or hairs as lining. Eggs may be found 
from April to August at Ottawa. (Garneau) 
