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"Pooecetes gramineus. Grass Finch. Bay-winged Bunting. Vesper-bird. Above, grayish-brown, closely and uniformly marked with dusky-centered brown-edged streaks, and further variegated by pale gray edging of the feathers. Crown quite like back, though the marking is in smaller pattern; superciliary line and eye-ring whitish. Under parts dull white, usually noticeably buff-tinged in the streaked areas, thickly streaked across breast and along sides with dusky-centered brown-edged streaks, anteriorly tending to concentrate in lateral chains bounding the white throat; above this chain a maxillary brown stripe; auriculars varied with light and dark brown. Quills fuscous, the longer ones with grayish-white edging, the secondaries and greater and median coverts with broad firm brown and white edges and tips; lesser coverts bright chestnut, whence the name "bay-winged". Outer-feather largely or wholly white, next pair or two airs largely white in decreasing amount. Upper mandible brown; lower, and the feet, flash-colored or yellowish." Elliot Coues, 1884

Bay-winged Bunting

"Pooecetes gramineus. Grass Finch. Bay-winged Bunting. Vesper-bird. Above, grayish-brown, closely and…

The song-sparrow on a branch.

Sparrow

The song-sparrow on a branch.

The sparrow-hawk on a branch.

Sparrow

The sparrow-hawk on a branch.

"Ammodramus. Seaside Sparrow. Bill remarkably slender and lengthened for this family, with culmen toward end, gonys straight, and sometimes an evident lobation of the cutting edge of the upper mandible. Wings short and rounded, yet longer than tail; inner secondaries, though not elongate, reaching nearly to end of primaries when wing is closed; point formed by 2d-4th quills. Feet large and stout, reaching outstretched about to the end of tail; tarsus about equal to middle toe and claw in length; lateral toes of equal lengths, very short, their claws under reaching base of middle claw. Tail shorter or not longer than wings, much rounded, of narrow, stiffish, sharp-pointed feathers. Embracing small streaky marsh sparrows, especially of the sea-coast, but not exclusively maritime, as long supposed; remarkable for slenderness of the bill, sharp narrow tail-feathers, and stout feet fitted for grasping slender swaying reeds. Edge of wing bright yellow; a yellow spot of buff stripe on head; upper parts olive-gray or quite blackish, streaky." Elliot Coues, 1884

The Details of a Seaside Sparrow

"Ammodramus. Seaside Sparrow. Bill remarkably slender and lengthened for this family, with culmen toward…

"Zonotrichia leucophrys. White-browned Crown Sparrow. Crown pure white, enclosing on either side a broad black stripe that meets its fellow on the forehead and descends the lores to the level of the eyes, and bounded by another narrow black stripe that starts behind the eye and curves around the side of the hind-head, nearly meeting its fellow on the nape; edge of under eyelid white. Or, we may say, crown black, enclosing a median white stripe and two lateral white stripes, all confluent on the hind head. No yellow anywhere. General color a fine dark ash, paler below, whitening insensibly on chin and belly, more brownish on the rump, changing to dull brownish white. No bright bay, like that of albicollis, anywhere, except some edging on the wing-coverts and inner secondaries; middle and greater coverts tipped with white, forming two bars. Bill and feet reddish." Elliot Coues, 1884

White-crowned Sparrow Head

"Zonotrichia leucophrys. White-browned Crown Sparrow. Crown pure white, enclosing on either side a broad…

"Zonotrichia albicollis. White-throated Crown Sparrow. Peabody-bird. Crown black divided by a median white stripe, bounded by a white superciliary line, and yellow spot from nostril to eye; below this a black stripe through eye; below this a maxillary black stripe bounding the definitely pure white throat, sharply contrasted with the dark ash of the breast and sides of the neck and head. Edge of wing yellow. back continuously streaked with black, chestnut, and fulvous-white; rump ashy, unmarked. wings much edged with bay, the white tips of the median and greater coverts forming two conspicuous bars; quills and tail-feathers dusky, with pale edges. Below, white, shaded with ashy-brown on sides, the ash deeper and purer on the breast; bill dark; feet pale." Elliot Coues, 1884

White-throated Sparrow Head

"Zonotrichia albicollis. White-throated Crown Sparrow. Peabody-bird. Crown black divided by a median…

"Passercules s. savana. Common Savanna Sparrow. Thickly streaked everywhere above, on sides, and across breast; a superciliary line, and edge of the wing, yellowish: lesser wing-coverts not chestnut; legs flesh-color; bill rather slender and acute; tail nearly even, its outer feathers not white; longest secondary nearly as long as the primaries in the closed wing. Above, brownish-gray, streaked with blackish, whitish-gray and pale bay, the streaks largest on interscapulars, smallest on cervix, the crown divided by an obscure whitish line; sometimes an obscure yellowish suffusion about head besides the streak over the eye. Below, white, pure or with faint buffy shade, thickly streaked, as just stated, with dusky- the individual spots edged with brown, mostly arrow-shaped, running in chains along the sides, and often aggregated in an obscure blotch on the breast. Wings dusky, the coverts and inner secondaries black-edged and tipped with bright bay; tail-feathers rather narrow and pointed, dusky, not noticeably marked." Elliot Coues, 1884

Common Savanna Sparrow

"Passercules s. savana. Common Savanna Sparrow. Thickly streaked everywhere above, on sides, and across…

"Passer domesticus, House Sparrow, The sexes may be similarly coloured or very different, the hues being commonly sober, but sometimes particularly brilliant. The feet are usually dull... the bill may be blackish, yellowish, dusky, or even red." A. H. Evans, 1900

Two House Sparrows, One Looking Down, One looking Straight, Sitting on the Top and Edge of a Structure

"Passer domesticus, House Sparrow, The sexes may be similarly coloured or very different, the hues being…

"Chondestes grammica. Lark Sparrow. Lark Finch. Head variegated with chestnut, black, and white; crown chestnut, blackening on forehead, divided by a median stripe, and bounded by superciliary stripes, of white; a black line through eye, and another below eye, enclosing a white streak under the eye and the chestnut auriculars; next, a sharp black maxillary stripe not quite reaching the bill, cutting off a white stripe from the white chin and throat. A black blotch on middle of breast. Under parts white, faintly shaded with grayish-brown; under arts grayish-brown, the middle of the back with fine black streaks. Tail very long, its central feathers like the back, the rest jet-black, broadly tipped with pure white in diminishing amount from the lateral pair inward, and the outer web of the outer pair entirely white." Elliot Coues, 1884

Lark Sparrow

"Chondestes grammica. Lark Sparrow. Lark Finch. Head variegated with chestnut, black, and white; crown…

"Zonotrichia leucophrys. White-browned Crown Sparrow. Crown pure white, enclosing on either side a broad black stripe that meets its fellow on the forehead and descends the lores to the level of the eyes, and bounded by another narrow black stripe that starts behind the eye and curves around the side of the hind-head, nearly meeting its fellow on the nape; edge of under eyelid white. Or, we may say, crown black, enclosing a median white stripe and two lateral white stripes, all confluent on the hind head. No yellow anywhere. General color a fine dark ash, paler below, whitening insensibly on chin and belly, more brownish on the rump, changing to dull brownish white. No bright bay, like that of albicollis, anywhere, except some edging on the wing-coverts and inner secondaries; middle and greater coverts tipped with white, forming two bars. Bill and feet reddish." Elliot Coues, 1884

White-crowned Sparrow

"Zonotrichia leucophrys. White-browned Crown Sparrow. Crown pure white, enclosing on either side a broad…

"Zonotrichia albicollis. White-throated Crown Sparrow. Peabody-bird. Crown black divided by a median white stripe, bounded by a white superciliary line, and yellow spot from nostril to eye; below this a black stripe through eye; below this a maxillary black stripe bounding the definitely pure white throat, sharply contrasted with the dark ash of the breast and sides of the neck and head. Edge of wing yellow. back continuously streaked with black, chestnut, and fulvous-white; rump ashy, unmarked. wings much edged with bay, the white tips of the median and greater coverts forming two conspicuous bars; quills and tail-feathers dusky, with pale edges. Below, white, shaded with ashy-brown on sides, the ash deeper and purer on the breast; bill dark; feet pale." Elliot Coues, 1884

White-throated Sparrow

"Zonotrichia albicollis. White-throated Crown Sparrow. Peabody-bird. Crown black divided by a median…