WAGTAILS 
431 
starts, and other warblers. Its favorite hunting places are the tips 
of spruce branches, over which it passes with a quick motion and a 
peculiar and constant sidewise jerk of the tail. Mr. Scott says it 
has a clear whistling song. 
FAMILY MOTACILLIDiE : WAGTAILS. 
GENUS ANTHUS. 
General Characters. — Bill shorter than head, about as wide as high at 
base, compressed, acute, and notched at tip; wings longer than tail. 
KEY TO ADULTS. 
1. Hind claw decidedly longer than toe .spragueii, p. 432. 
1'. Hind claw about equal to toe. pensilvanicus, p. 431. 
Subgenus Anthus. 
697. Anthus pensilvanicus {Lath.). Pipit. 
Hind claw about equal to toe. Adults in summer: upper parts gray¬ 
ish brown, indistinctly 
streaked ; wing blackish 
brown, with two huffy 
wing bars and light edg¬ 
ings ; tail blackish, inner 
web of outside feather largely white , second feather 
tipped with white ; superciliary stripe and under parts 
light buffy, chin lighter, chest streaked with dusky. 
Adults in winter: browner above, lighter below, streaks on breast usually 
broader. Young: similar, but washed with brown, and more distinctly 
streaked. Length : 6-7, wing 3.20-3.50, tail 2.65-2.85. 
Distribution. — North America at large, breeding in the higher parts of 
the Rocky Mountains, Cascades, and subarctic districts, wintering in the 
Gulf states, Nevada, California, Mexico, and Central America. 
Nest. — On ground, bulky and rather compact, made of dried mosses 
and grasses, lined with hair and feathers. Eggs: 4 to 6, nearly uniform 
brown from dense spotting. 
Food. — Small shells, crustaceans, insects, and small seeds. 
Flocks of these strange little northerners with demure garb, plain¬ 
tive voices, and the ways of wanderers are often met abroad in the 
land in spring and fall. In some parts of the dry country they are 
seen more generally in the seasons of heavy rainfall. They may be 
met in a ploughed vineyard, on a vacant city lot, or in the open 
country. If startled they rise from the ground showing their white 
tail feathers, with a wild cheep fly for a short distance, wheel, and 
return to their feeding ground. The earth usually matches their 
tints so well that it is difficult to see them, though their wagging 
heads and tilting tails help to catch the eye. 
In Colorado the pipits nest above timberline at an altitude of from 
11,000 to 13,000 feet, and in August many of the birds wander to the 
Fig. 541. 
