170 



SPRAGUE PIPIT. 



700. Anthus spraguei. 6*4 inches. 



Upper parts streaked with buff and blackish; under 

 parts pale buffy with blackish markings. 



The habits of this bird are about the same as those 

 of the last, but it is a more southern bird, breeding 

 on the plains of Dakota and northward. In some re- 

 spects it is not unlike the European Skylark, having 

 the same habit of soaring while singing, and its song 

 is said not to be inferior to that of the European bird. 

 Song. Very sweet and varied, more nearly resemb- 

 g 

 bird, but more melodious. 



Nest. A depression in the ground, with a lining of 

 fine grasses; the four or five eggs are grayish, finely 

 specked with purplish gray (.87x.67). 



Range. Plains of the interior of N. A., breeding 

 from South Dakota north to Hudson Bay; winters 

 south into Mexico. 



