474 ANIMAL LIFE IX THE YOSEMITE 



seasons the males as well as the females are invariably of retiring dis- 

 position. They both always do their foraging under or near brush, and 

 when pursued prefer to dive deeper into the home thicket rather than to 

 fly off to another shelter as do Golden-crowned, White-crowned and Inter- 

 mediate sparrows; if finally driven out they often circle about in erratic 

 flight and return to the same thicket from which they were flushed. Often 

 when an observer moves around trying to catch sight of one of the birds 

 the latter will hop about, uttering its sharp clink, and manage to elude 

 observation by keeping on the opposite side of the thicket or behind a 

 tree trunk or branch. Their movements are mouse-like, but as they move 

 about, one notes at close range an audible flutter of the wings such as 

 characterizes so many other brush-inhabiting sparrows. 



The fox sparrow forages exclusively on the ground, and does not even 

 seek the berry crops which are commonly borne on bushes within but a 

 few feet of the earth. It scratches persistently in foraging beneath the 

 brush thickets, jumping up and kicking vigorously backward with both 

 feet simultaneously. This procedure sends a small shower of leaves and 

 loose earth back from where a bird is digging, and often shallow holes 

 2 or 3 inches in diameter are left as a result. The quantity of food material 

 obtained evidently justifies the seemingly large amount of energy expended 

 in the search, as the birds can be seen to stop frequently and glean titbits 

 uncovered in their scratching. It is when absorbed in scratching under 

 the bushes that the coloration of the fox sparrows serves best to conceal 

 them from view; if the birds remain moderately quiet they fairly melt 

 into the background of brown earth and dry leaves. 



When perching these birds assume a peculiarly upright posture; but 

 they seldom remain long in one location, and as they move about from 

 twig to twig in the bushes, or on the ground, their strong legs and feet 

 enable them to move wdth marked grace and precision. Although this 

 sparrow is continually busy through most of the daylight hours, the twilight 

 of evening and morning marks its period of greatest activity. In summer 

 the males often leave their favorite haunts early in the morning and move 

 uphill, even ascending to the summit of some conifer to catch the first rays 

 of the coming sun, which they greet with full-toned songs. At Hazel 

 Green on May 15, 1919, a male sang twice at 3 :50 a.m., which was at the 

 earliest peep of daylight. 



The song of the male fox sparrow is among the most pleasing of the 

 bird songs of the high mountains. The individual notes ring out strongly 

 and clearly, the major ones being well enunciated. At Hazel Green, on 

 May 14, 1919, a singing bird was watched for a long time as he sat perched 

 at the top of a 9-foot Douglas spruce. He was motionless, excei>t when 

 singing, and even after his song had been heard a luimber of times it 



