SONG SPARROW
PR

With the exception of the English sparrow, the song sparrow is probably the best known of a large family. Certainly it is one of the easiest to recognize in its brown jacket and creamy white waistcoat that is lavishly sprinkled with crow-black markings. Nearly always two or three of the splotches blend together to form a large solid dot near the middle of the bird's breast.

The song sparrow does not exhibit the confidence in May that is shown by the white throat or chipping sparrows. Instead it stays a little apart and prefers the heavy growth of brambles or honeysuckle thickets. Singing time puts a different complexion on things though, and this is when it mounts to a favorite perch that is highly conspicuous and launches forth in song. To sing, the little fellow seems to find it necessary to tilt its head backward, point his bill skyward and to retain this position until the song is ended. Sometimes he will sing for two hours unless disturbed.

The nest of the song sparrow is usually found low to the ground in brush or shrubbery. It is composed of coarse grass and weed fibers on the outside and lined on the inside with finer material of the same sort.

Four to six eggs are laid, the general color being light green or gray, splattered with brown on the end.

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