Nov., 1900] BIRDS OF THE KOTZEBUE SOUND REGION. 51 



observed, were noted on September 2nd. The following spring the arrival of the 

 Gambel's Sparrow, as indicated by its beautiful song, was in the evening of May 

 2ist, and the species soon became common. The song is a clear sad strain of five 

 syllables and with rising inflection. In the Kowak delta on the nth of June I 

 obtained a set of six eggs in which incubation had commenced. The nest was 

 sunk into a hummock of moss on the ground under some alder bushes on a hill- 

 side. A clump of dead grass partly concealed it from view. It consisted of dry 

 grasses, lined with finer grass and black rootlets. The eggs are pale nile blue, 

 rather evenly covered with irregularly-outlined spots of chocolate and vinaceous. 

 They are ovate, and measure .83X.63, .81X.62, .86X.63, .85X.64, .83X.62, and .76X.60, 

 the latter being a runt egg. The native name of the Gambel's Sparrow is Ndbng- 

 ak-to'ruk. 



ZonotricJiia coronata (Pall.). 

 Golden-crowned Sparrow. 



A few of these sparrows were seen and heard on the 21st of August in brush 

 among spruces back of our camp on the Kowak. An immature male was secured. 

 They were shy and when alarmed took to the upper foliage of the spruces, instead 

 of diving deeper into the thickets as most sparrows do. The following spring 

 they were first noted on May 23rd, and their extremely sad quavering song of two 

 syllables was occasionally heard thereafter. I should, however, consider the 

 species as not at all common in this region. 



Spizella vtonticola ochracea Brewst. 

 Western Tree Sparrow. 



The Western Tree Sparrow was numerous at Cape Blossom. The patches of 

 stunted willow and alder back among the hills seemed to be particularly favored 

 by this species, and in such localities full-fledged young and moulting adults were 

 found in the latter part of July. I saw nearly fledged young on the loth of 

 Jul3^ At our winter quarters on the Kowak, the species was tolerably common 

 during the last of August and up to the 12th of September. It was la.st noted in 

 the mountains toward the head of Hunt River, where I saw two in a dwarf wil- 

 low thicket in a ravine on the 17th of September. The following spring their 

 arrival was noted on May 21SI, and they were soon common along the brush-bor- 

 dered timber tracts. Their song reminded me strongly of that of the Lazuli Bunt- 

 ing in California. In the Kowak delta on the i4tli and T5tli of June I took a set 

 of five and one of six slightly incubated eggs, respectively. The two nests were 

 similarly placed in the tops of clumps of grass at tlie edge of a marsh about six 

 inches above the water. The nest proper consists of closely-matted broad dr)' 

 grass blades and stems, while the lining is entirely of white ptarmigan feathers, 

 though not one shows above the rim. The deeply cup-shaped cavity is thus pure 

 white, thougli when the bird was sitting she entirely concealed it. The internal 

 diameter of the nest is 2.00, depth, 1.90; external diameter, 4.80, depth, 2.60. The 

 ground color of the egg is very pale blue. The set of six is quite uniformly and 

 thickly spotted with liver-l)rown and vinaceous tints. One Q.'g% of the set of five 

 is like them, but the others are wreathed at the large ends with confluent mark- 

 ings of the same colors, while the rest of the surface is very finely dotted and 



