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NoKTlI AMKUICAN lUllH.v 



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fi-athcns ; ponorallv tlic colors inor«' IdtMHlcil. rtciinal apprnranoo altovo li;^'lit nifoiis- 

 '•I'own, tlu' int«Tsra|tiilai' iv«,Mon stivakrd vny »»li>olt'fi'ly with <lark brownish-rufous, the 

 Itathcrs ol" thf crown similar, witli still darker obsolete central streaks. A superciliary 

 and very indistinct median crown-stripe ashy. Tuder parts «lull whit*-, the breast and 

 sides oi" throat and body bioadly streaked with «hirk brownish-rufons ; darker in the 

 centre. A Ii,t,dit maxillary stripe. Sides of the boily and anal rejri*)ii tin<re«l strongly with 

 the colors of the nnnp. Under coverts brown. Len<;th. (>.";'); winjr. 2.7t>; tail, 3.00. 

 Le^s rather darker thati in me/odin. Hill from nostril. .'.\~ ; from forehead, M\ 

 Had. Pacific cojust of the United State> to British Cohiinbia. 



A yotiij^' ]>ird from Xapa Vall«'y, ( al. (l:i,!U2, Colonel A. J. (Jrayson), 

 probaMy left'iriMe to this race, ditVers t'roiii t'oe correspoiulinjT staL>o <d' 

 hcermnnni, fnll((.r, and nielodia in tlie f(»llowiiig respects: the j^^roiind-color 

 above is niiicli dark(*r, being dull dingy-brown, and tiie dusky streaks 

 broader; the white beneath has a strong yellowisli tinge, and the pectoral 

 streaks are very broad. 



Habits. Dr. ('ooi)er characterizes tliis species as th(» most mutliern and 

 mountain-frecpienting representative of the Song S^^ari-ows, being a resident 

 of \hz higher Sierra Nevada and on the borders of the evergreen forests 

 towards tlie Columbia, and thence northward, m liere it is the only species of 

 tiJc i^euus, and wliere it is common down to tlie level of the sea. S})ecimens 

 have Ixien obtained at Marysville in tlie spring, by Mr. (rruber. 



Dr. Cooper says that he has also met with this ]»ird, and f(»inid it pos- 

 sessing habits and songs entirely similar to those of the eastern M. mdodia, 

 and resendiling also those of the more southern M. lufrmanni. He was 

 never able to meet with one of their nests, as, like other forest birds, they are 

 more artful in concealing their treasures tlum birds that have become accus- 

 tomed to the .society and protection of man, and who, no longer w^ild, select 

 gardens as the .safest places in which to Iniild. In the mild winters usual 

 about the mouth of the Columbia, these Inrds do not evince any disp(jsition 

 to emigrate, but come familiarly around the houses for their food, when the 

 snow has buried their usual su])ply. 



Dr. Suckley remarks that this Finch is quite a common bird in the vicinity 

 of Puget Sound, and that it is there resident throughout the year. He has 

 found them in verv ditierent situations ; some in thickets at the ed«!;es of 

 prairies, others in stranded drift-logs on o})en salt marshes, as well as in 

 swamps, and in the dense forests of the Douglass firs, peculiar to the north- 

 west coast. Its voice, lie adds, is, during the breeding-season, singularly 

 sweet and melodious, surpassing that of the ^leadow Lirk in melody and 

 tone, but unequal to it in force. 



. This species is stated to be a constant resident in the district wherein it is 

 found, never ranging far from the thicket which contains its nest, or the 

 house in the neighborhood of which it finds food and protection. Almost 

 every winter morning, as well as during the sun)mer, as Dr. Cooper states, its 

 cheerful song may be heard from the garden or the fence, as if to repay those 

 whose presenile lias ] protected it from its ra])acious enemies. When tmmo- 



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