TREE-SPARROW. 71 



menced in April. The bird may pair for life, for in many cases the 

 same site is tenanted yearly. The Tree-Sparrow is particularly fond of 

 breeding in pollard willows. The hole is usually at the top of the stump, 

 but sometimes in the side. Dixon has found the nest of this bird in the 

 branch of an oak tree. It also nests on isolated houses, such as old barns 

 and outhouses, making a hole under the thatch, whilst in rarer instances 

 it will build in crevices of rocks, and even, it is said, in walls. Like its 

 relation the House-Sparrow, it is said occasionally to utilize the old nests 

 of Crows and Magpies ; and in such a situation the nest is domed. In the 

 majority of cases the nest is cup-shaped and is rather loosely put together. 

 It is made very similarly to that of the House- Sparrow, but is not, per- 

 haps, so bulky, and does not contain such an assortment of rubbish. It is 

 usually made of dry grass, straws, and rootlets, lined with wool, feathers, 

 and sometimes a Kttle hair. The eggs of the Tree-Sparrow are from four 

 to six in number, and vary considerably in colour. The eggs in each 

 clutch are usually pretty uniform in colour, except one egg, which is 

 generally much lighter than the rest. These light-coloured eggs may be 

 the produce of the bird when its colour-producing powers are getting 

 exhausted. The eggs are bluish white in ground-colour; but generally 

 little of this can be seen, for the surface- markings are distributed so finely 

 and evenly over the entire surface as to hide it. The markings vary from 

 rich brown to greyish and greenish brown. On some eggs, especially 

 those which are more boldly and less evenly spotted, the underlying mark- 

 ings are very large and violet-grey. Some eggs are streaked with very 

 dark brown, something like those of the Meadow-Pipit. They vary in 

 length from '85 to •73 inch, and in breadth from "GS to '54 inch. Tree- 

 Sparrow^s eggs very closely resemble those of the House-Sparrow, but are, 

 on an average^ smaller and usually darker and redder. The same types are 

 found in each species ; but Tree-Sparrow^s eggs do not seem to vary so 

 much, and the markings are generally more thickly and finely dispersed 

 over the entire surface. The Tree-Sparrow is said to rear as many as 

 three broods in the season ; but certainly some pairs of birds never rear 

 more than one. When the nest is disturbed, the old birds, especially 

 if they have young, are very anxious, and uttering their shrill chirping 

 alarm-note, will hop restlessly from branch to branch and approach quite 

 near. 



The food of the Tree-Sparrow is very similar to that of the House- 

 Sparrow, but consists more of small seeds than grain, and in summer of 

 insects. The young are fed largely on caterpillars. 



In winter the Tree-Sparrow often wanders far from its usual haunts^ 

 and may be observed to mingle with flocks of other birds, and is not un- 

 frequently seen in the stackyards with the House- Sparrow. There can be 

 little doubt that our resident birds are increased in numbers in the 



