126 Ferry, Notes on Winter Birds. [April 



will alight in the leafless branches of a tree-top, from which they 

 will take flight at the first sign of danger. At other times the 

 observer may approach a low spruce tree in which they are feeding 

 and only with great difficulty can they be dislodged. The white- 

 winged species seems much more disposed to feed upon the ground 

 than its congeners. They are fond of juniper berries and this 

 fall Mr. R. J. Douglass observed them feeding on dried sun-flower 

 seeds, which were still embedded in the withered flower. At the 

 Douglass Nursery a few years ago the White-winged Crossbills 

 appeared in the early spring and descended upon seedling conifers 

 in such numbers that the birds were systematically shot. The 

 Crossbills appear to migrate in large flocks and when a favorable 

 locality is found they scatter in small flocks of a dozen to three or 

 four individuals. When thus scattered it is not uncommon for a 

 lone one to shoot down out of space, and make the place resound 

 with its clear, penetrating calls, which at such times seem to possess 

 an anxious or frightened quality. A friendly call of one of its 

 kind will send the straggler hastily thither. The White-winged 

 Crossbills exhibited an almost endless variety of plumage. The 

 highly colored male birds were comparatively few, being far out- 

 numbered by the females and immature birds in nearly every stage 

 of juvenile plumage. Some young birds resembled the female 

 Red- winged Blackbird (Agelaius phceniceus) , and from this degree 

 of plainness a very interesting case of varied coloration was seen. 

 These two species of Crossbill frequently intermingle. All speci- 

 mens of these species taken this fall were exceedingly fat. 



Acanthis linaria. Common Redpoll. — The Redpolls were 

 first observed on November 9, and were abundant at that time. 

 They were first seen in flocks of 25 or more but later divided into 

 smaller companies, some of them joining bands of Goldfinches 

 and Siskins. In closely assembled flocks they alight in a patch of 

 weeds and feed upon the seeds. They work industriously and in 

 perfect silence. Their note, a cheery, plaintive, canary-like call, 

 has a singular sweetness when it is the only bird melody of a bleak 

 winter day. 



Spinus pinus. Pine Siskin. — On September 30, the first 

 Siskins were seen, when a flock of about 15 flew over Lake Forest. 

 Their plaintive, rasping note makes them easily distinguished 



