330 BIRDS 



grass and moss. It is usually placed on the ground in fields 

 or open woods, where it is protected by the taller grasses. 

 Sometimes, however, low bushes or the lower branches of 

 trees are selected. So careful is the white-throat in the 

 constructing of its nest not to disturb the surrounding 

 vegetation, and so neutral is the color of the material used, 

 that one may hunt for a long time without finding it unless 

 he luckily stumbles upon it. 



TREE SPARROW 



Many cold winter days when the snow lies in drifts 

 along the hedges have I found the little tree sparrow the 

 only evidence of bird life. Of the size of our common 

 chipping sparrow, it is readily distinguishable by a small 

 black spot in the center of the breast. 



Tree sparrows breed in the far north, along the ice- 

 bound coast of Labrador and beyond. They are with us in 

 the Great Lakes region from November until late March, a 

 sociable little fellow usually traveling in flocks. They have 

 a faint call note, a mere chirp ; but their song, which is often 

 poured forth while the days are short and cold, is a very 

 pleasing little ditty. 



Probably no other sparrow is more beneficial. In every 

 waste spot where the sod has been disturbed, unless kept 

 down, rank weeds spring up and often form dense thickets. 

 These fields afford food and shelter for many winter birds, 

 enabling them to withstand the cold and the snow. Visiting 

 one of these growths on a cold January morning, one is 

 surprised at the animation of the busy little tree sparrows 



