480 General Notes. ees 
fallto the ground. In July and August the larve having matured descend 
to the trunk of the tree where they crawl under the loose bark and form 
pup. For the last three yearsI have noticed English Sparrows working 
on the trunks of badly infested trees, but this year they were especially 
active, I having observed from one to four working on the trunk of a tree 
at a time. They would creep around the tree in Nuthatch fashion up as 
high as the first limbs for the descending larve. I stopped to watch a 
pair of sparrows working on a tree to be sure that they were feeding 
on the larve, I was only five feet away so I could positively see that they 
were taking the larve and as they flew away with their beaks full they 
evidently were feeding young. As I have never observed them taking 
the pups or imagoes so I could not say whether or not they take them, 
although I have seen them working on the ground at the bottom of the 
tree amongst the pupze which became dislodged and fellto the ground. I 
believe the English Sparrow is becoming more insectivorous each year, as 
I have on several occasions observed them catching small moths on the 
wing, also breaking May beetles by pounding them on the sidewalk. Still, 
I believe the English Sparrow is decreasing in West Haven owing to the 
fact that the Starling, which is abundant at all times and occupies all avail- 
able cavities, has forced the Sparrow to resort to the backs of blinds, where 
the nests are thrown out as soon as discovered. So, under the prevailing 
conditions I do not think that two pairs out of ten successfully rear a brood 
in a season. But nevertheless, let us hope that the English Sparrow will 
continue to be insectivorous, especially in July and August when the larvee 
of the Elm tree beetle are at their height.— Nrtson E. Wiimot, 24 New 
Street, West Haven, Conn. 
The Slate-colored Junco in Colorado.— Dr. A. K. Fisher collected 
a specimen of the Slate-colored Junco (Junco hyemalis hyemalis) from a 
mixed flock in the suburbs of Denver, January 21, 1917. As this form is 
comparatively rare in Colorado, it seems desirable to record its occurrence 
in Denver, where hitherto I am inclined to believe it has not been detected. 
The specimen is in the collection of the Biological Survey at Washington.— 
W. H. Breretroup, Denver, Colo. 
Nesting of the Chiapas Blue Grosbeak (Guiraca cerulea chiapensis) .— 
Ridgway in his ‘ Birds of North and Middle America’ gives this species 
as occurring on the ‘“ Plateau of western Chiapas.’”’ His data being de- 
rived from two specimens, one of which, from the State of Oaxaca, not 
being typical. Both of these specimens are females, the male being, to 
date, not described. 
On May 26th, of the present year while on a collecting trip near the city 
of Tehuantepec with two youthful companions, I chanced upon the nest 
of this subspecies. Until this time I was not aware that it occurred in 
this locality and its discovery was therefore a surprise. Both during the 
fall and spring migrations the western form of the Blue Grosbeak is very 
