on the ground, where it forages by pecking and scratching. It also occasionally leaps into the air after insects or gleans them from foliage. Its diet, particularly in the winter, consists primarily of plant material; items include seeds, berries, flowers and buds, as well as the occasional crawling insect. The species is an important destroyer of weed seeds on the Pacific Slope, with various ryegrasses, fescues, bromes, pigweeds, chickweeds, mulleins, filarees, common knotweed and poison oak among its known food sources. Paired birds commonly forage together, with the male following the female. The species shows two weight peaks each year: one in mid-winter, and a much higher one shortly before it begins its migration north in the spring. The latter elevated weight is maintained until the bird reaches its breeding grounds. Breeding and lifespan The breeding season runs from late May through early August. Males on the breeding ground sing throughout the day from an exposed perch. The nest is a bulky cup built by the female. Located on the ground (or occasionally on a low branch), it is made of dried plant material and lined with hair, fine grasses and feathers. The female typically lays five eggs, though clutches of three to five have been recorded. The eggs, which are pale green, oval and heavily spotted with reddish-brown, measure (0.65–0.67)×(0.80–0.82) mm (0.026×0.031 in). They are incubated by the female for 11–14 days. The young are altricial—born naked, blind and helpless—but fledge from the nest within 12 days. Both parents feed the young. The oldest known golden-crowned sparrow lived at least 10 years and 6 months; it was banded as an adult one winter, and recaptured nine winters later. Voice The song is a three-note whistle, descending in pitch. It is very distinctive, and often described as oh-dear-me. The call also sounds like the words I'm so weary, so Alaskan gold miners along the trails called this bird "Weary Willie". However, birds in the mountains of British Columbia have been reported to have a trill on the third note, rather than a clear whistle as in other populations. These songs are heard mainly in the breeding season, but also in the wintering grounds just after fall migration as well as just before they take off for spring migration. Like other Zonotrichia sparrows, it has a sharp, distinctive call note, which is transcribed as tsew. Conservation and threats The International Union