308 USEFUL BIRDS. 
The alarm note is a metallic chip; and the song, which is 
often heard in May, is a sweet whistled strain, which has 
been rendered “Old Sam Peabody, Peabody, Peabody,” and 
from this fancied resemblance to these words it is called the 
Peabody Bird. 
In May, when the White-throat passes north, it is of some 
service in the destruction of beetles. In the fall it feeds to 
some extent on berries and berry seeds, but its main useful- 
ness at this season lies in the destruction of weed seeds. 
It is very fond of the seeds of ragweed and polygonum. 
Dr. Judd says that in October (when these birds are com- 
mon in Massachusetts) ragweed seed constitutes forty-five 
per cent. of their food. 
Grasshopper Sparrow. Yellow-winged Sparrow. 
Coturniculus savannarum passerinus. 
Length. — About five inches. 
Adult.— Upper parts generally brown, streaked with black on back, much varie- 
gated, quail-like, and mixed with gray on rump; crown very dark, with a 
buffy line through it; a buffy-yellow stripe over eye; under parts buff, 
fading to whitish on the belly; no noticeable breast streaks; wings below 
the bend edged with bright yellow, ordinarily concealed from view ; tail 
short. 
Young. — Similar, but breast streaked with blackish. 
Nest.-— On ground. 
Eggs.— White, brown-spotted. 
Season. — May to September. 
The Grasshopper Sparrow is common locally in eastern 
Massachusetts, but rare or wanting in many localities. In the 
southeastern part of the State it is hardly locally common, 
except in Nantucket. It is found through middle and south- 
ern Worcester County and in the Connecticut valley, and is 
probably much more common than is generally believed, as 
it is never conspicuous, and is largely confined to the open 
fields, where it readily hides in the grass. Minot says “they 
frequent almost exclusively dry fields, particularly such as do 
not contain a luxuriant vegetation.” While this appears to 
be true of eastern Massachusetts, where many neglected fields 
are of that character, it is not altogether true of Worcester 
County. Although this Sparrow is never found in swamps, 
it is seen occasionally in meadows, and often inhabits fertile 
