PASSERES — FRINGILLID^. 153 



the spring migrations in Lorain county. It frequents rather 

 wet woods which are much grown with brush, as well as the 

 more swampy places. 



In food habits this sparrow is not injurious, but its pref- 

 erence for swampy places, where it feeds upon the insects 

 and seeds, does not give it a high standing as a beneficial 

 species. However, it must be classed as one of the sparrows 

 which does more good than harm. 



This sparrow reaches Lorain county about April 21, 

 and remains until about the middle of May, returning again 

 late in September for ten days or two weeks. 



212. (585.) Passerella iliaca (Merr.). 108. 

 Fox Sparrow. 



Synonyms: Fringilla iliaca. 



Eastern Fox Sparrow, Fox-colored Sparrow, Rufous Spar- 

 row. 

 Kirtland, Ohio Geol. Surv., 1838, 164. 



This is a common migrant both spring and autumn. It 

 is found in the brushy woods in company with the other 

 sparrows which haunt such places, but it seems to feel an 

 aloofness to them. It is rather slow and sedate in carriage, 

 not skulking in the brush piles as much as the others. 



Fox Sparrow is fond of millipeds in April, and eats 

 many ground beetles during that month also. Of the 86 per 

 cent, of vegetable matter which constitutes its food, some 

 30 per cent, consists of the seeds of fruit. The remaining 

 vegetable matter is largely seeds of ragweeds and poly- 

 gonum. While some of the insects are useful, and possibly 

 some of the fruit is cultivated, the destruction of weed 

 seeds is so large that the birds perform a great service to 

 agriculture. 



This is one of the early spring sparrows, arriving at 

 Oberlin about the middle of March and remaining five 

 weeks. It returns again during the last week in September, 

 or the first week in October, and remains a month. 



