FRINGILIJD.K — THE FINCHES. 57I 



at the Summit M<*a<lo\vs,m»nr tho summit of Dnnner Lake Puss of the SipiTJi 

 Nevada, at an altitude of alxjut si»ven tlmusaud feet. It was there un abun- 

 dant and cliaracteristic liird. The niah'.s were in full son^' in all j>arts of the 

 meadow, and wen? nestin*,' in sueh nund»ers that on the evenini; ot July i), 

 on halting' for tiie ni^dit, in a hurried search no less than twenty-seven of 

 their e'j;«is were obtained within alH)ut fifteen minutes. In every instance 

 the nests were enduMlded under a species of dwarf-willow, with which the 

 ground was ccjvered. The birds were extremely unsuspicious, the male often 

 sitting on a bush within a few feet of the collector, and chanting merrily as 

 the eggs were being blnwn. In one in.stanee, having occasion to re]»ass a spot 

 from which a nest had l)een taken, the female was found sitting in the cavity 

 from which its nest had been removed. This species is only a winter visitant 

 of the lower comitry, but is there universally distributed, and always I'ound 

 in bushv localities. 



Mr. IJannister states that this bird was tolerably abundant among the 

 alder-bushes in certain parts of St. Michael's Island. Mr. Dall found it 

 connnon at Xulato, and esi)ecially so at Fort Yukon. It arrived at Xulato 

 about May 20. Its nests and eggs were obtained from Indians at Nowika- 

 kat, on the Yukon lliver. Dr. Kennerly met with these birds, in February, 

 at White (.'lill' Creek, New ^lexico. They were first observed on ajjproach- 

 ing the Big Sandy, and from thence to the Colorado they were found in abun- 

 dance. They were mostly in flocks, and were generally found among the 

 bushes, in the vicinity of water. He also met with it in the valley of the 

 liio (irande, Corralitos, and Janos Kivers. It seemed to prefer the vicinity 

 of settlements, where it was always seen in greater numbers than else- 

 where. * 



Mr. Dresser found these birds connnon about San Antonio, Texas, during 

 the winter, arriving late in September. Some may remain and breed, as sev- 

 eral were observed there in June. Dr. Coues also found them abundant in 

 Arizona, where he first observed them Se])teraber 15. After this they became 

 exceedingly numerous, and remained so until January. Later than this only 

 a few stragglers were seen, until April, when they again became abundant. 

 By tar the greater ]>art left, and jiroceeded north to breed. 



These Sparrows were found breeding on the Yukon and at Fort Anderson 

 in great luunbers by ^lessrs. MacFarlane, Lockhart, and Ross. Their nests 

 were in nearly all ca.ses found ui)on the ground, often in tufts of grass, 

 clumps of Labrador tea, or other low bushes. They were composed of hay, 

 and, in nearly every instance, were lined with deer's hair, and in a few with 

 feathers. A few were without any lining. In selecting a situation for their 

 nests, they seemed generally to give the preference to open or thinly wooded 

 tracts. The male l)ird was usually seen, or its note heard, in the immediate 

 vicinity of the nest. The eggs were obtained from the 4th of June to the 

 1st of July. Their maximum number was six ; the most common, four. 



Mr. B. IJ. Boss states that this species arrives at the Arctic Circle from 



