54 



NORTH AMEKICAN IJIRDS. 



PUssereUa totcnxendi. 



Had. Pacific coast of United StaWs, as far soiith as Sacramento, and Fort Ttjon ? 

 north to Kodiak (and Fnalasciika ?). 



This species ditters a i^ood deal in form ii-om P. iliarn. Tlio claws are 



much laij'er and stouter, the win«; 

 a |j:ood deal slioiter and more 

 rounded. The ditlerences in color 

 are very appreciable, the tints Ijeing 

 dark sepia -brown instead of red, 

 and perfectly uniform above, not 

 spotted ; the under parts much 

 more tliickly spotted. 



Specimens from Alaska show a 

 tendency to lont^er and perhaps 

 more slender bills. Some are 

 rather more rufous-brown than the 

 type ; others have a faint tinge of ashy anteriorly, althougli scarcely ap- 

 preciable. This is especially noticeable in some skins from Fort Tejon, 

 they being almost exactly intermediate Ijetween toicnscndi and schist area, or 

 mcfjarhyncliHs. 



Young l>irds are not materially different from the adult, except in having 

 the white of under parts replaced by pale rusty ; the back is rather duller 

 in color, but without spots or stripes of any kind. 



No. 46,620 from British Columbia has the bill much stouter than in the 

 average. 



It is by no means certain, however probable, that this bird is the E. una- 

 laschkciisis of Gmelin, an important objection being its a])sence so far in 

 collections received by tiie Smithsonian Institution from that island. We 

 therefore leave the question open for the present. 



Habits. The history of this western analogue of the Fox-colored Spar- 

 row is still quite imperfectly known. It was first obtained in Oregon by 

 Mr. Townsend, on the loth of February. He describes it as a verv active 

 and a very shy bird, keeping constantly among the low bushes of worm- 

 wood, and on tlie ground in tlieir vicinity. It was partially gregarious, six 

 or eight being usually seen together. Its call-note was a short, sharp, quick 

 chirp, and it also had occasionally a low weak warble. 



Dr. Ganibel, referring probably to its occurrence in winter in California, 

 speaks of this bird as an abundant resident in that State, wliicli is not cor- 

 re?t, it being only a winter visitant, and not abundant south of San Francisco. 

 He describes its habits as very different from those of any other Sparrow, 

 and more like those of a Thrush. It is said to keep in retired busliy places, 

 or in underwood, and was scarcely ever seen except on the ground, and then 

 would scarcely ever be discovered but for the noise it made in scratching 

 among the leaves. It was silent and unsuspicious, and he rarely heard it 

 utter even its occasional chirp. 



