The Field Sparrow when frightened does not retreat to the cover of foliage, 

 as does the Song Sparrow, but flies to an exposed position on top of bush or low 

 tree, where it can watch and await developments. In the fall they frequently 

 gather in small flocks. If disturbed all will fly to the nearest bushes, and in 

 perching will cluster close together. 



The Field Sparrow is all the more interesting because of its shyness. Mr. 

 Keyser speaks of it as ''a captivating little bird, graceful of form and sweet of 

 voice, singing his cheerful trills from early spring until far past mid-summer. 

 The song makes me think of a silver thread running through a woof of golden 

 sunshine, carried forward by a swinging shuttle of pearl." Mr. Chapman says: 

 "There is something winning in his appearance ; he seems such a gentle, innocent, 

 dove-like little bird." 



Humming Birds 



By W. L. McAtee 



Hummingbirds are popularly supposed to live upon the nectar of flowers, 

 and unquestionably this substance forms an important part of their food. Close 

 observation has shown, however, that these little birds do not visit flowers wholly 

 for the purpose of gathering honey, nor do they obtain all their food from flowers. 

 The writer has observed them hovering in front of a cobweb, picking off insects 

 and, perhaps, spiders entangled in the net. They have also been observed to 

 capture their food on the wing, like flycatchers. Stomach examination shows 

 that a considerable part of their food consists of insects and spiders, with some- 

 times a very little vegetable matter. 



Only one species of hummingbird inhabits the eastern part of the United 

 States. This is the ruby-throat {Archilochus colnhris) (fig. 5), which is more or 

 less common almost everywhere in that region. The writer has seen 100 of these 

 tiny creatures hovering about the flowers of a buckeye tree, and this number was 

 maintained all day and for many days, though the individuals were going and 

 coming all the time. 



In order to obtain definite knowledge as to the food of hummingbirds in 

 general, and the ruby-throat in particular, 59 stomachs of this species were exam- 

 ined. Although the humming birds are the smallest of the avian race, their 

 stomachs are much smaller in proportion to their bodies than those of other birds, 

 while their livers are much larger. This would indicate these birds live to a con- 

 siderable extent upon concentrated sweets, as stated above, and that the insects. 



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