304 BIRDS 



thrive on buds and winter berries. During the coldest days 

 of January these hardy birds may be seen moving in flocks 

 of from, say, six to sixty, from hmb to hmb, calhng to each 

 other in their mild, subdued notes, "chee, chee, chee." By 

 no means shy birds, they are found in our public parks and 

 highways, perfectly unconcerned. 



I have a nest and three eggs taken June 11, 1909, on 

 the mountains in Arizona at an altitude of 7,000 feet. The 

 nest was placed 55 feet up in a pine tree and on a limb 20 

 feet from the trunk. The nest is made of dead pine twigs, 

 lined with fine grass and rootlets. 



PINE GROSBEAK 



The Pine Grosbeak, like the crossbills and evening gros- 

 beak, is an inhabitant of northerly latitudes, and may be 

 observed in the northern portions of the United States only 

 during the late fall and winter months. As its name would 

 impty, it is a lover of evergreen forests. It inhabits the 

 northern portions of both the Eastern and Western Hemi- 

 spheres. Ernest E. Thompson says: "Its form resembles 

 that of the robin, but the resemblance ceases when we 

 notice the short, thick beak and forked tail." Like the 

 evening grosbeak, it moves leisurely among the trees; the 

 flight is accompanied by a loud, clear whistle. 



These birds become reconciled to cages and make inter- 

 esting pets. During the mating season their song is 

 extremely sweet and varied. They breed earh^ while snow 

 is still on the ground. They feed largely on wild berries 

 like those of the juniper, mountain ash, sumac, etc. 



