22 Bird Comrades 



a pleasure it was to ramble about in new fields and make, 

 acquaintance with new bird friends! There is not a 

 very marked difference between the avifauna of eastern 

 Kansas and Ohio, and yet there are some birds found in 

 the former state that are not met with in the latter - 

 enough to keep the observer on the tiptoe of expectancy 

 for several months. 



One of my new acquaintances was a little bird which 

 is known as the clay-colored sparrow. It belongs to the 

 same genus (Spizella) as the chipping and field sparrows 

 which are so well known in the East ; but it has an individ- 

 uality of its own, and is not merely a copy. I stumbled 

 upon it while pursuing my explorations near Peabody, 

 far out on the level prairie, where the species was abun- 

 dant during the season of migration. As I was saunter- 

 ing along a road, a peculiar croaking little trill greeted 

 me from the hedge, sounding very much like the rasping 

 call of certain kinds of grasshoppers when they are sud- 

 denly startled and take to wing. But no insect had ever 

 emitted quite such a sound in my hearing. This could 

 not be an insect. It was worth while to look and make 

 sure of the identity of the odd musician. 



After some difficulty, I fixed my glass upon a number 

 of little sparrows about the size of the chippies. They 

 bore a close resemblance to that species too, save that 

 the crown-piece and the general tone of the back were 

 decidedly darker, while the under parts were a good deal 

 whiter. The clear, ash-colored cervical interval between 

 the crown and the back and the distinct brown loral and 



