GROSBEAKS, FINCHES, SPARROWS: Family Fringillidae [549] 



Sitka Crossbill: 



Loxia curvirostra sitkensis Grinnell 



DESCRIPTION. "Adult male: Dull red, generally brighter on rump; gray showing 

 through on under parts; feathers of back indistinctly streaked; wings and tail plain 

 dusky. Adult females: olivaceous, often shading to bright yellow. Young: streaked, 

 on olive gray ground. Young male: mixed with yellow and red before reaching adult 

 stage." (Bailey) Si%e: Length (skins) 4.50-5.10, wing 3.18-3.40, tail 1.73-1.98, 

 bill .55-.6i. Nest: A flat platform of twigs and shreds of bark, lined with horse- 

 hair and fine rootlets. Eggs.- Usually 4, greenish, spotted with brown and gray. 



DISTRIBUTION. General: From vicinity of Sitka south along coast to central Cali- 

 fornia. In Oregon: Permanent resident from summit of Cascades west to Pacific. 



THE SMALL-BILLED Sitka Crossbill is an abundant resident of the coniferous 

 forests in the western half of the State. Newberry (1857) published what 

 is undoubtedly our first record for this subspecies as now known. He 

 found it common in the upper Willamette Valley. Since his time many 

 writers have noted its presence. In any locality it may be very erratic, 

 appearing one season and then remaining absent for several years. The 

 birds nest at almost any season, apparently, where an abundant crop of 

 coniferous seed is ready for harvest. Generally they are more regular 

 along the coast than in inland localities. Yachats and Netarts for many 

 years had a regular quota of crossbills present at every season. Then, 

 unaccountably, the birds disappeared from those spots for one entire 

 season or longer. 



Out of a representative collection of Oregon crossbills of over one 

 hundred skins, there is only one specimen of this small-billed smaller bird 

 from eastern Oregon. It was taken at Stanley Ranger Station on the 

 Wallowa National Forest, July 2.1, 1910 (Gabrielson Collection No. no). 

 All the other numerous eastern Oregon skins are undoubtedly Loxia curvi- 

 rostra bendirei. 



These are the gypsies of the bird world, who know no laws of regu- 

 larity. They wander north, south, east, or west, and up and down the 

 mountains with no apparent correlation with the seasons. This is prob- 

 ably due to their specialized feeding habits that make them largely 

 dependent on coniferous seed. Their curiously crossed bills can open a 

 cone with surprising dexterity and deftly extract the seed from between 

 the scales. Few American birds are more highly specialized. Stomach 

 examinations made by the Biological Survey revealed that 96.47 per cent 

 of the contents of 195 winter stomachs and 68.34 per cent of the contents 

 of 41 summer stomachs was seed of various conifers. Beetles, Hymen- 

 optera, and miscellaneous insects comprised the main part of the summer 

 insect food. At times when feeding on or near the ground, the birds are 

 unsuspicious, allowing a close approach apparently without noticing the 

 intruder. Their fondness for salt has been noticed and commented upon 



