MELOSPIZA LINCOLNI I LINCOLN S SPARROW. 253 



Lincoln's Sparrow must be accounted a rare bird in 

 New England actually wanting, perhaps, in some 

 parts, in others frequently observed, but on the whole 

 a bird which straggles into these States in such loose 

 and desultory fashion that it cannot be relied upon. 

 It is characteristic of no Fauna, inhabiting North 

 America at large ; but, beyond the fact of its un- 

 doubted breeding in New England, and its usual oc- 

 currence during the migrations, little can be said with 

 our present information. It has usually been consid- 

 ered so rare and irregular a straggler, that the few in- 

 stances of its occurrence have been thought worth 

 recording. It has chiefly been seen in Massachusetts 

 and Connecticut. Mr. Merriam's notice is specially 

 interesting : " Mr. Erwin I. Shores, of Suffield, Conn., 

 writes me that it is ' not rare' in that vicinity, where he 

 took one specimen in 1874, an( ^ three more this spring 

 (1877). Mr. Shores says that on May 23d, and again 

 on June 2d, he ' saw one with small twigs in its bill,' 

 hence, although he did not actually find the nest, there 

 can be no reasonable doubt of its breeding. He further 

 states : 'There is a small piece of woodland in this 

 place where surely they cannot be considered rare. 

 Have seen several that I have not been able to shoot. 

 They are very shy. You just barely get a glimpse of 

 one and have just time to get an idea of what it is, 

 when down he goes into the thick shrubbery, and no 

 amount of patient waiting will tempt him to come in 

 sight again. Provoked, you determine to kill every 

 one that comes in sight, and after the slaughter of 

 half a dozen innocent Song or Swamp Sparrows, you 

 conclude that that won't do. Then, perhaps, almost 

 the first bird you leave will be Lincoln's Sparrow. I 



