156 THE SMALLER BRITISH BIRDS. 



grasses, which are there so abundant that they form one-fifth of the 

 phaonogamous vegetation (that is, plants whoso seed-vessels are placed 

 externally), while in other parts of the globe the proportion is less 

 than half as great. The seeds of these grasses are retained during 

 the winter, so that the Buntings can obtain them immediately on their 

 arrival, after the melting of the snow. "In passing down the Seneca 

 River, towards Lake Ontario/' says Wilson, "I was surprised by the 

 appearance of a large flock of these birds feeding on the surface of 

 the water, supported on the tops of a growth of weeds that rose from 

 the bottom, growing so close together that our boat could with great 

 difficulty make her way through them. They were running about with 

 great activity; and those I shot and examined were filled, not only 

 with the seeds of this plant, but with a minute kind of shell-fish 

 that adhered to the leaves. In these aquatic excursions they are 

 doubtless greatly assisted by the length of the hind heel and their 

 claws." 



The flight of these birds is described as low, performed in an un- 

 dulated line, by means of repeated flappings and short intervals of 

 cessation; when they have arrived at a fitting place, they wheel sud- 

 denly round, and alight rather abruptly. Usually, when not about to 

 travel to a distance, they fly near the ground; Naumann says the 

 evolutions performed by a flock are extremely curious, they whirl round 

 each other, and wind about, much in the fashion of waltzers in a 

 ball-room. On the ground they run with rapidity, not hopping after 

 the manner of Sparrows, but moving each foot alternately. 



The nest is generally placed in the cleft of a rock, or in a pile of 

 stones or timber on the sea-shore; sometimes under a single largo 

 stone; the entrance being only just largo enough to admit the bodies 

 of the owners. It is composed of dry grass and moss, and lined with 

 down, feathers, and a little hair. One was found by Captain Lyons 

 at Southampton Island in the bosom of a dead Esquimaux child which 

 had been buried under a heap of stones. The eggs, from four to six 

 in number, are greenish or bluish white, with a zone of umber brown 

 spots around the thicker end, and numerous blotches of pale purple. 



The plumage of this bird varies greatly; some specimens have the 

 head, neck, and under parts of the body, a patch on the wings, and 

 the edges of the outer tail feathers pure white, and the remainder of 

 the plumage black. Others are much tinged with brown. The amount 

 of white is subject to great variation. These differences were the cause 

 of much confusion with naturalists, the varieties being described as 

 distinct species under the names of the Mountain, Tawny, and Snow 

 Bantings. All doubts as to their identity were set at rest by Mr. 



