In the Woods. 163 



the gray showing on the shoulders, sides, flanks, belly, and beneath the tail. 



The wings are dusky, with whitish edgings becoming pinkish in some in- 

 dividuals, and the tail is dusky. Adult females have the wings and tail 

 similar to the adult male, but are otherwise grayish slate color, with a wash- 

 ing of yellowish olive, where the rosy red prevails in the male. Immature 

 birds are similar in general appearance to the female. 



But little is known of the life history and habits of these Grosbeaks at 

 their. breeding grounds, but the nest is built of rather coarse plant fibres and 

 twigs, and lined with finer material, in pine and kindred trees, not far from 

 the ground. The eggs are a little over an inch long, and nearly three quar- 

 ters of an inch in their other diameter. They are greenish blue in color, 

 spotted with varying shades of brown. 



Anolher bird of boreal distribution, occupying the interior portions of 

 Northern North America from Manitoba northward, and migrating regularly 

 Evenine Grosbeak ^"^° ^^^ upper Mississippi Valley, and erratically to the 

 coccothraustes vespertinus Ncirth Atlantic States, is the Evening Grosbeak. 



^^""p-^- A robustly built finch, some eight inches in length, 



with a particularly large and heavy bill, it is among the most striking of the 

 family,, both on account of its fine appearance, the texture of its plumage, and 

 its beautiful coloring. 



The male has a yellow forehead and black crown. The belly and tail 

 are black. The sides of the head, the neck, and back are brownish olive, 

 changing to yellow on the shoulders and rump. The wings are in the main 

 black, but there is a considerable area of white below the yellow on the 

 shoulders and some of the longer feathers are tipped with white. The region 

 under the wings is yellow. 



The females and immature birds are grayish brown, with yellowish suf- 

 fusion especially on the back of the head and neck, lighter on the breast and 

 belly. The tail is black, tipped with white on the inner webs of the feathers, 

 and there is a whitish patch at the base of some of the longer wing feathers. 



But little is known of the summer habits of this bird, and its very ap- 

 pearances where it occurs more commonly in winter are erratic and nomadic- 

 At points in Minnesota, Wisconsin, and in Northern Illinois and Iowa, it 

 seems to be of more regular occurrence than elsewhere. The records of its 

 comings and goings embrace all months from September to late in May. 

 The birds at such times are singularly tame and frequent the vicinity of houses 



