dickcissel. 
89 
the 127 stomachs examined was there any fruit skin round, and the 
- in the stomachs were often broken, and were usually eaten at a 
time when the whole berry or fruit was not obtainable. Thus, seeds 
of blueberries and elderberries were found in stomachs collected in 
March, and broken stones of grapes and blackberries in stomachs col- 
lected in May. It is obvious that the fruit to which these seeds orig- 
inally belonged had been destroyed long before the birds picked up 
the seeds. 
DICKCISSEL. 
(Sj)iza americana. 
The dickcissel (see fig. 18) formerly raised its broods over a con- 
siderable portion of the United States east of the Rocky Mountains: 
but two or three decades a«:o it abandoned the Eastern States and 
Fig. 18.— Dickcissel (Spiza americam 
now rarely breeds east of the Allegheny Mountains. In autumn it 
migrates to Central and South America. In some localities it is 
known as the little meadowlark, because its coloring is like that of 
the meadowlark, even to the black locket on the breast of brilliant 
yellow. Most sparrows are gregarious, but dickcissels move about 
in pairs or little family groups. In many places they are so numer- 
ous that a score of individuals may be found in every hayfield and 
meadow; and the species is as characteristic of such localities as the 
