SPIZELLA S0CIAL1S. 
95 
SPIZELLA SOCXALIS. 
Chipping Sparrow. 
Spizella socialis Bon., List, 1838. 
DESCRIPTION. 
Sp. Ch. Form, rather slender. Size, medium. Tongue, horny, provided with the terminal, hair-like fibers. Upper 
mandible, slightly curved. Sternum, as given under generic characters. 
Color. Adult in summer. Top of head, hack, outer edges of upper wing coverts, and other wing feathers, chestnut, 
brightest on the head, but with the occiput slightly, and the back broadly, streaked with black. Neck above, forming a 
collar, through which the black extends, rump, upper tail coverts, outer edges of tail feathers, ear coverts, sides of neck, 
and sides, ashy. Wings and tail, brownish-black. Forehead, line from bill, passing through eye, and bill, black. Medi¬ 
an line, through black of forehead, superciliary line, throat, under wing coverts, under tail coverts, tips of upper wing cov¬ 
erts, forming bars, white. Remainder of under parts, ashy-white, darkest across the breast. Feet light-brown. 
Adult in winter. Differs from the above in having the crown overcast with blackish, and the chestnut of the crown is 
extended down on the neck, almost obscuring the collar. The lines of black above are not as clearly defined, but there is 
less ashy below. The bill is reddish, especially on the under mandible. 
Youny. In this stage the top of the head, and usually the rump, are more or less streaked with black. The marking 
cf the forehead is not as prominent. 
Youny of the year in autumn. Show but little chestnut on the crown, but are more rufous on the wings, the white 
bars being replaced by reddish. 
Nestlinys. Are similar to the above, but are streaked below, on all portions, excepting the abdomen, even the throat 
and sides of head, including superciliary stripe, are so marked. The throat is yellowish, and the sides are reddish. The 
sexes are similar in all stages. 
OBSERVATIONS. 
Specimens vary greatly in amount of chestnut on the back, where the black usually predominates, but I have seen a 
bird which had the back almost wholly chestnut. The black of the forehead also varies in width. It is always present, but 
in some specimens the white median line becomes much extended, reaching over a greater portion of the anterior crown. 
There is sometimes a slight trace of chestnut on the ear coverts. 
Readily known in the adult and young stages by the chestnut crown, black forehead and white median line. The nest¬ 
lings always show an indication of the reddish crown. This species may be distinguished from pusilla in having less red a- 
bove. The ever present black line through the eye is a characteristic marking. Distributed, while breeding, across the 
Continent from the latitude of South Carolina, north, at least to that of Canada. Winters from the Carolinas southward to 
Cuba, but is not common below Middle Florida. 
DIMENSIONS. 
Average measurements of fifteen specimens. Length, 5• 45; stretch, 8'50; wing, 2*65; tail, 2*35; bill, '38; tarsus, '63. 
Longest specimen, 5*60; greatest extent of wing, 8*75; longest wing, 2*75; tail, 2*60; bill, *42; tarsus, *73. Shortest speci¬ 
men, 5*40; smallest extent of wing, 8'15; shortest wing, 2*12; tail, 2*20; bill, *35; tarsus, *55. 
DESCRIPTION OF NESTS AND EGGS. 
Nests , placed in trees. They are compact structures, composed outwardly of fine roots, lined with horse hair. Dimen¬ 
sions; external diameter, 3*25, internal, 2*00. External depth, 1*75, internal, 1*00. 
Eyys, four or five in number, oval in form, blue in color, spotted, dotted and lined with black and lilac. Specimens va¬ 
ry from the above in being marked with reddish-brown, but it is usual to find some spots or dots of black. I once had a set 
that was unspotted. Dimensions, from *75 x *50 to *80 x *55. 
HABITS. 
One can scarcely enter a field of a plantation, in Northern Florida, which is overgrown 
with weeds, without starting large flocks of birds. Usually a large proportion of them will 
be Chipping Sparrows. They remain all winter enjoying the bright sunshine of this mag¬ 
nificent climate, spending their time in comparative idleness; for seeds are abundant, and 
it requires but a slight effort to obtain them. It is quite noticeable that the birds of this 
