140 FIELD SPARROW. 
its higher ground, but the two Sparrows now to be men- 
tioned are birds of the uplands, rarely if ever living in 
low, wet places. i 
An old hillside pasture, dotted with young cedars or 
clumps of bushes, in which he may place his nest, is the 
Field Sparrow, favorite home of the Field Sparrow. 
Spizella pusilla. | Tere you may look for him early in 
Plate XLUI, April. He is a rather shy bird, who 
will fly some distance when alarmed, and then alight on 
a bare twig near or at the top of some bush or sapling. 
Very different this from the Song Sparrow’s way of div- 
ing into a bush. 
From his exposed position he watches you and gives 
you an equally good chance to watch him. Note the 
whitish, unstreaked breast, the reddish brown or sorrel 
crown, the gray face and whitish ring about the eye, and 
especially the pale brownish or flesh-colored bill. These 
are all good marks, and if now you can hear him sing his 
identity will be settled without question. His song is one 
of the most pleasing I know. It is very simple but very 
expressive, a sweet, plaintive cher-wee, cher-wee, cher-wee, 
cheeo dee-e-e-e-e, which goes straight to one’s heart. It is 
sung most freely after sunset, and is in keeping with the 
peacefulness of the evening hour. At this time, too, the 
bird seems inspired to more than usual effort, and its or- 
dinary song is often so elaborated and prolonged as to be 
scarcely recognizable. 
The song season ends in the latter part of August, 
and, although the birds are with us until November, I 
have rarely heard them sing in the fall. 
The Vesper Sparrow, Grass Finch, or Bay-winged 
Bunting—for he bears all three names—prefers more 
open grounds than the Field Sparrow selects. There is 
something free and spirited about this bird and its song 
which demands space for its proper development. No 
