^"^Qlf"^^] Cooke, Wi7}ter Birds of Oklahoma. 487 



regular numbers; the Wliite-crowned was the least common and was found 

 almost entirely in weed patches in town and on the edges of the prairies; 

 the Harris's Sparrow came next in numbers and most of them kept in the 

 thickets along the small streams, a few coming into town and still fewer 

 into the heavy timber; the White-throated, the most common of all, kept 

 strictly to the bottomlands. 



The Harris's Sparrows remained abundant all winter and on February 

 23 a few were found in the heavy timber, though still keeping for the most 

 part to the borders of the woods. 



The bulk of the winter residents departed the night of March 9, but their 

 places were taken immediately by migrants from the south in such numbers 

 as to make the species on March 15 more common than it had been any 

 time through the winter. But they left as quickly as they had come, and 

 a single bird seen March 25 was the last. 



69. Zonotrichia leucophrys leucophrys. White-crowned Spar- 

 row. — A single male in full dress November 9 was the first noted. The 

 numbers increased gradually until by November 29 the species was common 

 along the brushy streams near Caddo, but on that day was found in small 

 numbers only, in the heavy timber along the Blue. A norther on Decem- 

 ber 19, froze everything solid and brought an increase of White-crowns, but 

 these continued south soon afterwards and by December 25 the species 

 was rare. It remained so the rest of the winter; it was present all the time 

 but seldom more than two or three seen in one day. There was no increase 

 of numbers as spring opened and the last was noted on March 11. 



70. Zonotrichia albicoUis. White-throated Sparrow. — This was 

 one of the most abundant birds in the woods throughout the winter. It 

 was not noted near Caddo during November, but when the heavy timber 

 was visited for the first time on November 29 it was found to be the most 

 common bird there, and evidently must have come several days earlier. 

 It was scattered through the woods in parties of 10-25 birds, most of the 

 flocks being of the former size; several hundred birds in all were seen. 

 Though the numbers decreased somewhat during December and January, 

 yet it continued to be the most common sparrow in the woods through the 

 whole winter and to February 23. During all this time not one was seen 

 in town, where all the other sparrows came frequently, but on March 5 its 

 clear spring song was heard in the village. B^^ this time the bulk had left, 

 and on March 25 the last one was noted. 



71. Spizella monticola monticola. Tree Sparrow. — The first 

 were noted October 31, but they had probably arrived with cold snap of a 

 few days previous. They had increased by November 6 and after the 

 norther of December 19, they became one of the commonest birds. In 

 the fields and along the edges of the woods thej^ were more common even 

 than the Junco, but in the heavy timber they were outnumbered bj' the 

 TMiite-throated Sparrow. By throwing some bird seed on the south porch 

 of my house January 7, we had a whole colony of sparrows in plain sight 

 right under the window. A party of some twenty Harris's SpaiTows almost 



