What Bird is That? Part 27

White or yellowish white eyes; whitish underparts, washed with yellow on the sides. L. 5.

_Range._ Nests from Florida and Texas to Wisconsin and Ma.s.sachusetts; winters from South Carolina to the tropics.

Was.h.i.+ngton, common S.R., Apl. 18-Oct. 19.

Ossining, common S.R., Apl. 29-Oct. 3. Cambridge, rare S.R., May 8-Sept. 20; formerly common. Glen Ellyn, rare, spring only, May 24-June 5.

An inhabitant of bushy undergrowths whose snappy calls possess almost the character of human speech, so clearly and emphatically are the syllables enunciated. One's presence seems to excite both his curiosity and his disapproval, for he looks one over from this side and that all the while giving expression to remarks which sound far from complimentary. The nest is hung from a crotch, rarely more than 6 feet from the ground. The eggs laid in April, in the South, in May in the North, are white with a few blackish spots.

The Key West Vireo (_V. g. maynardi_) has a longer bill and is somewhat paler below than the White-eye. It is resident in southern Florida and the Keys.

BELL'S VIREO

_Vireo belli belli. Case 6, Fig. 65_

Smallest of our Vireos; crown ashy, lores and eye-ring whitish. L. 4.

_Range._ Mississippi Valley; nests from Texas to northwestern Indiana and South Dakota; winters in the tropics.

Resembles the White-eye in habits, notes, and choice of haunts, but, according to Goss, its notes are not so harsh and emphatic.

WOOD WARBLERS. FAMILY MNIOTILTIDae

BLACK AND WHITE WARBLER

_Mniotilta varia. Case 6, Fig. 57_

The female is less conspicuously striped than the male, but both are quite unlike any of our other birds. L. 5.

_Range._ Nests from Georgia and Louisiana to Canada; winters from Florida southward.

Was.h.i.+ngton, abundant T.V., less common S.R., Apl.

8-Oct. 18. Ossining, common S.R., Apl. 18-Oct. 1.

Cambridge, very common S.R., Apl. 25-Sept. 5. N.

Ohio, common T.V., a few S.R., Apl. 22-Sept. 26.

Glen Ellyn, common T.V., Apl. 28-May 28; Aug.

11-Sept. 27. SE. Minn., common T.V., uncommon S.R., Apl. 23-Oct. 12.

This species and the three Nuthatches are our only birds that creep down as well as up; but the Nuthatches wear no body stripes and are otherwise too unlike the Creeper to be confused with him. The Downy Woodp.e.c.k.e.r 'hitches' himself upward advancing by jerks; the Brown Creeper, true to its name, _creeps_. The nest is built on the ground and the white, brown-marked eggs are laid in April in the South, in May in the North.

PROTHONOTARY WARBLER

_Protonotaria citrea. Case 5, Fig. 29_

The female is duller than the male, but is too like him to be mistaken for the mate of any other Warbler, while he is in a cla.s.s by himself. L. 5.

_Range._ Nests from Florida to Delaware and southeastern Minnesota; winters in the tropics.

Was.h.i.+ngton, of irregular occurrence in May. N.

Ohio, one record, May 9. Glen Ellyn, rare, spring only, May 13-15. SE. Minn., common S.R., of Mississippi bottoms, May 7-Aug. 16.

No description or ill.u.s.tration prepares one for the gleaming beauty of the Golden Swamp Warbler. Cypress swamps or willow-bordered sloughs, where it may nest in the opening in old stubs, are its chosen haunts, and in such places it is sometimes found in numbers. The white eggs, thickly marked with brown, are laid in May.

SWAINSON'S WARBLER

_Helinaia swainsoni. Case 5, Fig. 28_

No wing-bars, plain brown above, white below. L.

5.

_Range._ In summer from Florida and Louisiana north to southern Illinois and southeastern Virginia; winters in the tropics.

Comparatively few bird students have seen this retiring Warbler in its haunts. "Water, tangled thickets, patches of cane, and a rank growth of semi-aquatic plants," Brewster states, seem indispensable to its existence. Its song in general effect, the same writer says, recalls that of the Northern Water-Thrush. The nest is built in bushes, canes, etc., and the white eggs are laid in May.

WORM-EATING WARBLER

_Helmitheros vermivorus. Case 7, Fig. 31_

Head striped with black and buff; body unstreaked, no wing-bars. L. 5.

_Range._ Nests from South Carolina and Missouri to Connecticut and Iowa; winters in the tropics.

Was.h.i.+ngton, quite common S.R., Apl. 28-Sept. 15.

Ossining, common S.R., May 7-Aug. 23. Cambridge, A.V., one instance, Sept.

Comparatively few bird students can claim close acquaintance with this slow-moving, dull-colored bird who lives on or near the ground, usually in dry woodlands. Its song, resembling that of the Chipping Sparrow, will attract only an attentive ear, while its local distribution further prevents it from being more commonly known. It nests on the ground, the white, brown-marked eggs being laid in May.

BACHMAN'S WARBLER

_Vermivora bachmani. Case 5, Figs. 20, 21_

All but the central pair of feathers with white spots near the end; no wing-bars; size small, the bill sharply pointed and slightly decurved. L. 4.

_Range._ In summer known from Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Kentucky, Arkansas and Missouri; in winter recorded only from Cuba.

When migrating, this little-known species a.s.sociates with other bird travelers and may be found high or low. When nesting, it frequents swampy woods and, although it usually sings from the tree-tops, it builds in bushes within a few feet of the ground, laying 3-4 white eggs in the latter half of April or in May. Its song has been compared to that of both the Parula Warbler and the Chipping Sparrow.

BLUE-WINGED WARBLER