i St)

.44

FINCIIES, SPA RROWS, ETC.

season it may often be seen descending with airy, sweeping flight into some lealless treetop. as if from a far a't‘rial journey, its identity made known by its very characteristic utterance, a short, rather dull-sound- ing note, scarcely metallic—the metal pressed the instant the bell is struck.

Although the Purple Finch often essays to sing in the autumn and earliest spring, its full powers of voice belong alone to the nuptial season. Then it easily takes its place among our noteworthy song birds. Its full song is a sweet-toned, carelessly flowing warble—not too brief to miss definite character as a song, and positive enough in modulation and delivery to find ready place in the memory. At times, indeed, its singing is of a character not to be easily forgotten. The song bursts forth as if from seine uncontrollable stress of gladness, and is repeated uninterruptedly over and over again, while the ecstatic bird rises high into the air, and, still singing. descends into the trees.

CUGENE P. BICKNELL.

Passer domesticus (Li/272.). Iiorsr; Siunnow; Exousu SPARRow. Ad. 5 .~Crown gray, bordered from the eye backward and on the nape by ehcstuut; lesser wing—eovcrts chestnut, middle coverts tipped with white; back streaked with black and chestnut; rump ashy; middle of the throat and breast black; sides of the throat white; belly whitish. All. 9.—Head and rump grayish brown; back streaked with black and deep oehraeeous—buil; under parts dirty whitish, the breast and sides washed with pale grayish brown. L., 6'33; \V., 3'01; T., 230; 13., 43’.

Hunger” Nearly the, whole of Europe, but replaced in Italy by P. italiw, extending eastward to Persia and Central Asia, India, and Ceylon” (Sharpe). Introduced and naturalized in America, Australia. New Zealand, etc.

Host, of any available material in any available place. £ny, varying from plain white to almost uniform ()ll\‘c~l)l‘o\\'ll, generally white, finely and evenly marked with olive, 1'56 x '62.

We learn from Bulletin No. 1 of the Division of Economic Orni- thology and )lammalogy of the United States Department of Agri- culture* that this pest was first introduced into the United States at Brooklyn, New York, in 1851 and 1852. As late as 1870 it was largely confined to the cities of the Atlantic States, but since that date, partly through man's agency and partly through the bird’s rapid increase in numbers and adaptability, it has spread over most of the United States and Canada east of the great plains, and isolated colonies are estab- lished throughout the west.

* The English Sparrow (Passer domestieus) in North America, especially in its Relations. to Agriculture. Prepared under the Direction of Dr. C. Hart Mer- riam, Ornithologist, by Walter B. Barrows. Assistant Oruithologist, Washington, 1889.