FIXCIIES, SPARROWS. KTP. 



300 



usual call-note is a .sharp rherp, not uuliki' tliat of the VV'hiti'-throafrd 

 Sparrow, and quite dilTi-rent fnxu tlio rather nasal r/i/ia of the Sonjf 

 Sparrow. 'I'lieir song in a simple, sweet, but somewhat monotonous 

 tiircf-fircff-iirfff, repeated many tinies, all on one iu)te, and som'.'times 

 running into a trill. 



68B< Pa>S8erella iliaoa I ■)/( vr. ). Fox Spaubow. .4*/.— Upper parts 

 rut'uiis-hrnwi), tlie feuthurs imirtr'uii'd by t'inimmoii-l)ro\vn ; upper tuil-eovfrtri 

 iiiul tail hinjht rufous; wiu/^rs miir- 

 jlinctl with rufous; under parts heav!' 

 Ijl strealied and spntt('<l witli nit'ous- 

 lirown aiul lilaekish ; middle of the 

 hclly white ; lower iMundil)lc yllow- 

 isli. L., 7-2(i; W., 3-;J!»; T., f^'^; B., 

 •oO. 



RaiKje, — Breeds from the Majrda- 

 len Ishuids an<.l Manitol)a to Alaska; 

 winters from Vir;.'iuia soutliwurd. 



WashiiiiTtou, very alumdant T. V., '' 



Fell, to .\pl. 5 ; Oet. '.'."> to Nov. ; a few Fia. 87.— Fox Sparrow. (Natural size.) 

 winter. Siuj^ Siii!', tnli'rai)ly eommon 



T. v., Meh. 4 to A pi. 20; Oet. 14 to Nov. '.i8. ('aml)rid-,'e, abundant T. V,, 

 Meh. 15 to Apl. 20; Oet. 20 to Nov. 15. 



Xixt, of course grasses, lined with tiucr <rrasscs, hair, moss, and ft-athers. on 

 the ijfround, and in low trees and iiushes. A'f/.'AS foiu- to live, pale bluish, evenly 

 speekled or heavily blotehed with umber or vinaeeous-brown, '80 x •(J.3 (see 

 Bendire, Auk, vi, IHSD, p. 108). 



In the early spring the Fox Sparrow i.s seen mostly about damp 

 thickets and roadside shnd)bery; later it takes more to woods- ides, 

 foraging on Icai'-strewn slopes where there is little or no undergrowth, 

 often associated with small parties of Juncos. On its return in the 

 autumn it again becomes a common denizen of hedgerows and thickets, 

 and also invades the weedy grainfields, rarely, however, straying far 

 from some thickety cover. Sometimes largo numbers congregate 

 among withered growths of tall weeds, whence they emerge with a 

 loud whirring of wings as their /etreat is invaded, and hie away in 

 tawny clouds, flock after flock. It is a great scratcher among dead 

 leaves, and can make the wood rubbish fly in a way which, in propor- 

 tion to its size, a barnyard fowl could scarcely excel. 



The usual note of the Fox Sparrow is a feeble tKeep. A note of 

 excitement is louder and sharper in tone. Its song is not surpassed 

 by that of any of our Sparrows. It is a revelation to hear it at sun- 

 down on some vernally softened evening of early springtime ; little 

 swarms of gnats hover in the balmy air; from the twilight meadows 

 comes the welcome, half-doiditfnl piping of the first hylas — no other 



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till 





