238 THE BIRDS 
Blacksburg from October 5th to March 11th, but not as 
a breeding bird in that section. The bird is a fairly 
common breeder, though, in the upper section of our 
State near the Maryland line, the marshes bordering the 
brackish streams affording the surroundings so liked by 
these birds. Along the borders of these open marshes 
one finds their nests, placed in a clump of grass on some 
hummock or elevated knoll, and concealed entirely from 
the eye by overhanging vegetation. The nest is com- 
posed of fine marsh grasses and lined with finer grasses. 
The eggs number four to five, the ground a pale greenish, 
spotted and specked with blackish-brown and chestnut. 
The markings vary greatly in color, though the greenish 
ground makes them easily distinguishable from those of 
the Song Sparrow, as well as being a trifle smaller. 
Size, .75x.55. Although it is a rare occurrence, I have 
taken eggs of this species as far south as Elizabeth City 
County. Fresh eggs May 25th to June 7th. Their food 
consists of grass and weed seeds, insects, and the smaller 
worms and grasshoppers, found in, and bordering closely, 
their swampy retreats. They rear but a single brood a 
season. 
GENUus PIPILo. 
[587]. Pipilo erythrophthalmus erythrophthalmus 
(Linneus). Towhee. 
[Ground Robin. Wood Robin. Chewink]. 
Raner.—Eastern North America. Breeds in Transition 
and Upper Austral zones east of the Great Plains from 
southeastern Saskatchewan, southern Manitoba, southern 
Ontario, and southern Maine south to central Kansas and 
