PERCHING BIRDS 



558. WHITE-THROATED SPARROW. 

 chia albicollis. 



Zonotri- 



White 



White-throated Sparrow 



Range. North America east of the Plains' 

 and breeding from the northern tier of states! 

 northward; winters from the Middle States; 

 southward. 



To my mind this is the 

 most beautiful of Sparrows, 

 with its bright and softly 

 blended plumage and the pure 

 white throat boldly contrast- 

 ing with its grayish breast 

 and sides of the head; the 

 lores are adorned with a 

 bright yellow spot. They are one of the most 

 abundant of Sparrows in the east during mi- 

 grations and their musical piping whistle is 

 heard from hedge and wood. They nest most 

 abundantly north of our borders, laying their 

 three or four eggs in grass lined hollows in 

 the ground, or more rarely in nests in bushes. 

 The eggs are white or bluish white, thickly spotted with several shades of 

 brown. Size .85 x .62. They nest most often in thickets or on the edge of 

 swamps, in just such places as they are met with on their migrations. 



559. TREE SPARROW. Spizella monticola monticola. 



Range. North America east of the Plains, breeding north of the United States 

 to the Arctic coast, east of the Rockies ; winters within the United States. 



A larger bird but somewhat resembling the common Chipping Sparrow, but 

 browner above, with a black spot on the breast and no black on the head. 

 They are quite hardy birds and winter in many of the northern 

 states where they may be found in flocks upon the snow, feeding 

 on seeds of protruding weeds. They breed very abundantly in 

 Laborador and about Hudson Bay, placing their green nests in 



hollows on the ground or moss; 

 their three or four eggs are 

 greenish white, abundantly 

 speckled all over the surface 

 with reddish brown. Size .80 x .55. Data. 

 Foothills of Black Mountains, McKenzie River, 

 Arctic America, June 13, 1899. Nest on the 

 ground under a tuft of grass on level plain; 

 made of grasses and moss and lined with feath- 

 ers. 



559a. WESTERN TREE SPARROW. Spizella 



monticola ochracea. 



Range. North America west of the Plains, 

 breeding in Alaska and wintering to Mexico. 

 A paler form of the last, the nesting habits 

 and eggs of which are the same. 



560. CHIPPING SPARROW. Spizella pas- 



serina passerina. 



Range. North America east of the Plains, 

 breeding from the Gulf to the interior of Can- 

 ada and Newfoundland. 

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