1 62 OUR WINTER BIRDS 



The nest of twigs and rootlets Is placed in a conif- 

 erous tree somewhere in northern New England or 

 Canada. The pale greenish blue, brown-spotted eggs 

 are laid in June. Very little is known of the birds' 

 nesting habits. 



Evening Grosbeak 



Beyond question our most distinguished winter vis- 

 itor is the Evening Grosbeak. Until recent years it 

 was so rarely seen east of Wisconsin and Illinois 

 that few bird students could claim the honor of its 

 acquaintance, but for the past eight years it has 

 come to us more frequently and in greater numbers 

 than the Pine Grosbeak, southern New Jersey being 

 the most southern point from which it has been re- 

 corded. 



About the size of the latter birds, the males have 

 the forehead yellow, crown black, back olive-brown, 

 underparts yellow, the wings and tail black, the for- 

 mer marked with white, while the female is brownish 

 gray, tinged with yellow below and on the nape, the 

 wings and tail much as in the male. 



The Evening Grosbeak is usually seen in flocks 

 of from six to eight to as many as sixty birds. They 

 feed mainly on the seeds of the box elder, maple, 

 and buckthorn, but also evidently acquire a taste for 

 sunflower seeds. By placing a supply of these seeds 



