CONCORD 
1893 
April 7 
Heavy flight 
of Sparrows 
Fox 
Sparrows 
A carpenter came from Cambridge to work on the canoes 
and I spent most of the forenoon with or near him at the 
river landing. To my great surprise, the farm was simply 
alive with birds the entire morning. Either there was a 
great rush of migrants last night or, what seems more 
probable, they came yesterday while I was at Cambridge. Most 
of them were Sparrows, Fox, Tree and Song Sparrows and 
Juncos, banded together in a flock containing upwards of 
fifty individuals. They fed on the ground among the black¬ 
berry bushes and drifted back and forth across the river, 
visiting the pines near the North Bridge several times. 
There were ten or a dozen Fox Sparrows in this flock. 
When on the ground, they worked busily and in perfect 
silence, kicking the leaves behind them by a succession of 
vigorous backward flings of the feet. When started, they 
would fly to the nearest bushes or apple tree and, sitting- 
motionless, utter the strong lisping chirp which is so 
characteristic of the species. This chirp can be at once 
distinguished from that of any other Sparrow except 
Pooecetes [Vesper Sparrow. ,J which makes a closely 
similar but slightly feebler sound. None of these Fox 
Sparrows sang when they were in the open but once safely 
sheltered among the pines they sent forth burst after burst 
of their rich music 
