THE TREE-SPARROW. ^ 



The distribution of this species in Great Britain is imperfectly known, owing 

 to its general resemblance to the House- Sparrow and its comparative rarity, but 

 it is believed to be most abundant in the eastern and midland counties of England, 

 and the eastern counties of Scotland: in Ireland it was not discovered until 1852, 

 but is steadily extending its range and increasing in numbers. 



It is believed that in the autumn the numbers of our resident Tree-Sparrows 

 are largely added to, by flocks of immigrants from the north ; many hundreds 

 arriving on our east coast, in company with Greenfinches, during October and 

 November. 



The Tree-Sparrow chiefly differs from the House-Sparrow in its slightly inferior 

 size, chestnut crown and nape, a white-bordered triangular black patch on the ear- 

 coverts, a second white bar across the wing ; and in the fact that the female 

 scarcely differs from the male. Young birds have the black markings replaced by 

 brown, and the wing bands suffused with buff. 



During the summer months this species in our islands differs somewhat in its 

 habits from those on the Continent, seeming to avoid towns and the larger villages, 

 and (according to Seebohm) chiefly haunting " the fields and wilder districts away 

 from houses " ; but curiously enough the whole of the nests which I have taken, 

 both in Kent and Norfolk, were found in holes in trees within a stone's throw of 

 at least one house, and sometimes at a distance of only a few yards. " On the 

 Continent, however," (says Seebohm) " the bird has so far overcome its shyness, 

 and adapted itself to circumstances as to frequent the towns, and is quite as pert 

 and impudent as its congener, which it otherwise resembles in its habits." 



As a site for its nest the Tree-Sparrow seems to prefer holes in pollard 

 willows when obtainable, and, more often than not, the selected hole is at the top 

 of the stump, though I have also taken it out of a hollow and decayed lateral 

 branch, about five feet from the ground : in Norfolk all the nests I found were 

 in willows ; but in Kent I took one nest from a hole in the front of an old oak- 

 tree facing the road, whilst Lord Lilford says that in Northamptonshire they " are 

 to be found nesting generally in small colonies of three or four pairs in old 

 hollow trees, especially (in our neighbourhood) decayed ash, willows, and walnuts." 

 Yarrell speaks of the species as building "in the thatch of a barn, in company 

 with the House-Sparrow, not, however, entering the thatch from the inside of the 

 building like them (sic), but by holes in the outside"; whilst Howard Saunders 

 mentions its building " beneath the tiles of roofs, as well as under the coping of 

 old walls and in sea-cliffs " ; I have taken it from a hole in a ruined lime-kiln ; 

 and, in the "Zoologist" for 1887, p. 265, I recorded the fact of my finding a 

 nest with six perfectly typical eggs (on May 24th) in an exposed mole-burrow in 



VOL. ii. O 



