BIRDS OF DURHAM AND VICINITY. 
75 
is interesting to note that the fall appearance of this sparrow is ahnost 
precisel}' on the day that the last Chipping Sparrow leaves us ; and 
also that its disappearance in spring agrees quite as closely with the 
Chippy's coming, as may be seen by comparing the migration data of 
the two species. This and the Junco are the only native sparrows 
found here in winter. 
Spizella socialis. . Chipping Sparrow. 560. 
Chipping Sparrows begin to come singly, on their northvv^ard move- 
ment, these forerunners being followed in a few days by the main 
body. The earliest date of their appearance that stands on my record 
is April 15, and the latest April 23. In autumn they are gradually 
disappearing all through October, adult birds going first. In one 
instance I have seen two here as late as October 31, both young birds 
of the year. The next latest record that I have is of a single imma- 
ture specimen, found v.-ith a flock of Tree Sparrows and J uncos feed- 
ing on gray birch seeds October 23. This sparrow has become 
attached to cultivated land, and places more confidence in mankind 
than any other bird in our avifauna. It nests in every orchard, and 
frequently builds in some convenient situation about the house, attend- 
ing to its family cares quite unconcerned by the proximity of people. 
Spizella pusilla. Field Sparrow. 563. 
This common summer resident, notwithstanding its trivial name, 
belongs to pasture lands, where sweet ferns and similar shrubbery 
abound. It has a sweet plaintive whistle, consisting of three or four well 
sustained notes at about the same pitch, which finally run into a rising 
trill, diminishing into silence. The nest is made wholly of grass stems 
and placed indifferently in a bush or on the ground. They feed on 
the ground as a rule, though I have seen them eating gray birch seeds 
in September. The period of its residence here is the same as that 
of the Chipping Sparrow. 
Junco hy emails. Slate-colored Junco. 567. 
The Junco is best known as a spring and fall migrant, but a few 
always spend the winter here in suitable places. October 5 is the 
earliest fall record of its coming that I have made ; this has twice been 
the date of its appearance. Few remain after the middle of Novem- 
ber. The spring flight begins early in April and is nearly over by the 
twentieth of that month. In a single instance I have seen a female 
