WHITE-CROWNED SPARROW. 71 
The bird appears, as well as can be judged by means of this limited 
material, to be much more insectivorous than the typical white-crowned 
sparrow. In fact as much as 70 percent of the food contents of the 
stomachs collected on Saturnia Island consisted of insects. Spiders 
and sand fleas (Amphipoda) were also eaten. Cutworms and closely 
allied smooth caterpillars form half of the insect food, while beetles, 
including ground- and leaf-beetles, weevils (Rhynchophora), scara- 
baeids, and lampyrids (Podahrus), and such insects as ants and useful 
wasps make up the remainder of the food. These highly insectivorous 
habits appear surprising when the date of collection of half of the stom- 
achs is considered. It is probable, however, that on Saturnia Island 
insects are obtainable much earlier than at an inland station of the 
same latitude, because of the comparatively mild climate of the coast. 
The vegetable food proved interesting for two reasons. In the first 
place only one bird had eaten grain, and in the second place not one 
had touched grass seed. The latter fact appears in harmony with the 
habits of ail the members of the genus, but the former is unexpected 
and in striking contrast with the habits of NuttalPs sparrow. The 
miscellaneous weed-seed element of the food includes chickweed, 
lamb's-quarters, wild sunflower, polygonum, and dock. A few violet 
and mallow seeds were also found in the stomachs. 
With regard to the food of Nuttall's sparrow (Zonotrichia leuco- 
phrys nutioTli) it is possible to speak more authoritatively since 100 
stomachs of this subspecies have been examined. These were col- 
lected in California during all the months of the year except August 
and September. 
The summer food of this bird is of especial interest, as it affords 
the only clew had to the food habits at this season of the other two 
subspecies. A dozen stomachs were collected during June and July, 
which contained 43 percent of animal matter and 57 percent of veg- 
etable matter. The insect material is distributed as follows : Orthop- 
tera, together with larval Lepidoptera, 4 percent; Coleoptera, 9 per- 
cent; Heteroptera and Jassidse, 7 percent, and Hymenoptera, 23 per- 
cent. Click-beetles, weevils (Rhynchophora), lampyrids (fireflies and 
their allies), dung-beetles (Aphodius), and leaf-beetles make up the 
bulk of the beetles. The 23 percent of Hymenoptera, which for any 
sparrow is unusually large, is composed for the greater part of useful 
parasitic species, and so must be counted heavily against the bird. 
During cold weather this bird becomes a seed eater. In fact, from 
October to February nine-tenths of its nourishment is derived from 
grain, weed seed, and the seeds of plants of little economic impor- 
tance. As with the preceding species, no grass seed is eaten. Owing 
to this apparent distaste for grass seed and to the absence of rag- 
weed from its habitat, it seems to be forced into eating the seeds of 
lamb's-quarters and amaranth, which are usually a second choice 
with sparrows. So freely does it eat the seeds of these two weeds 
