460 NESTS AND EGGS Of 



This Wagtail occurs abundantly in Alaska. Dr. Stejneger states that B. 

 leucostriatus is a common breeding bird in the environs of PetropaulsJii, Kam- 

 chatka, being found during the months of June and July everywhere on the low 

 marshy grounds surrounding the lakes, fresh-water ponds and brackish lagoons of 

 the vicinity. On Bering Island single individual* were seen until June 10. The 

 nest of this bird is placed on the ground and usually concealed by a tussock of grass, 

 projecting stone, etc. The eggs are dull white, yellowish or brownish-white, pro- 

 fusely covered with fine dots of reddish-gray, dark brown or black; average size, 

 .76X.55. 



697. AMERICAN PIPIT. Anthus pensilvanicus (Lath.) Geog. Dist.— Whole 

 of North iimerioa, breeding from the high mountains of Colorado and from Labrador 

 northward to the Arctic coast. Winters in the Gulf States, Mexico and Central 

 America. 



Known as the American Titlark, Brown Larli, Louisiana Lark and Wagtail. An 

 abundant and a well-known bird everywhere in iields and plains throughout North 

 America. In the United States it is seen chiefly in flocks in fall, winter and spring. 

 Breeds in the mountains of Colorado (above timber line), and from Labrador north- 

 ward to the Arctic regions. The nest is placed on the ground, and .is large and bulky, 

 made of coarse, dry grasses and moss loosely put together. From four to six dark 

 chocolate-colored eggs are laid, the surface of which is marked or overlaid with 

 numerous specks and streaks of grayish-brown. The average size of the eggs in 

 five sets in Mr. C. H. Cole's collection is .76x.56 inches. 



[698.] MEADOW PIPIT. Anthus pratensis (Linn.) Geog. Dist.— Europe; 

 northern portions of Africa in winter; occasional in Southern Greenland. 



The European Titlark very closely resembles the American bird, A. pensilvanicus, 

 in appearance and all its general characteristics. An occasional visitant in Southern 

 Greenland. It inhabits the whole continent of Europe, where it is the most common 

 and best known of Its tribe. In Great Britain the Titlark is found throughout the 

 year. It frequents all kinds of localities — hill or valley, marsh or moorland, shady 

 woods and flowery meadows, the neighborhood of busy towns, or the sandy sea-shore. 

 The nest is built on the ground, and is coinposed of dried grasses, lined with finer 

 grass, moss and a few hairs. The eggs are four to six in number, and Scarcely any 

 two sets are exactly alike in color; the ground tint may be blue-gray, reddish-brown 

 or yellow-brown; in all cases the eggs are spotted ^nd mottled with darker brown 

 or mouse-gray, giving to the surface a uniform dark appearance. A set of five eggs 

 collected by Mr. W. Wells Bladen, June 2, 1879, in Staffordshire, England, exhibits 

 the following sizes: .79x.59, .80x.59, .83x.58, .84x.59, .85x.60. A set of four from 

 Suffolk measure respectively, .78x.58, .75x.54, .74x.57, 77x.56. The average size is 

 .T8X.57 inches. 



[699.] BED-THKOATED PIPIT. Anthus cervinus (Pallas.) Geog. Dist.— 



Northern parts of the Old World. Accidental in Lower California, St. Michael and 

 Aleutian Islands, Alaska. 



Seebohm states that in Northern Europe the Red-throated Pipit breeds on the 

 tundra above the limit of forest growth, from the Atlantic to the 

 Pa.cific, but becomes rarer west of the Ural Mountains. The nest is 

 made entirely of dry grass, the foundation being made of the coarser pieces. It is 

 generally placed on the ground under the shelter of vegetation. The eggs vary from 



