ORNITHOLOGY. 



133 



ORNITHOLOGY, 



THE WAEBLERS 



BY EDMOND J. SAWVKk, SCHENECTADY, 



N. Y. 



The best place for warblers at this 

 time is a hard wood on wet ground, or 

 with a brook running through it, and 

 with a rather dense lower growth of 

 maple and dogwood. The species dif- 

 fer widely in habits during the breeding 

 season and somewhat while migrating, 

 but nearly all are associated closely at 

 this season. Such a gathering of colors 

 and display of charm and animation is 

 not to be seen among any other birds. 

 Scores of the little rainbow tinted crea- 

 tures on every side of you flitting and 

 hashing and calling with sweet lisping 

 voices among the fresh green of the new 

 buds — the scene can hardly be imagined. 



THE REDSTART WARBLER. 



( )f summer residents and semi-annual 

 visitors, about sixty species in all, twenty 

 to thirty may be looked for during the 

 month in any favorable wood. It is not 

 difficult to identify a dozen species in a 

 small wood on a single morning's visit. 

 So beautifully colored and diverse are 

 even the commoner warblers that as a 

 family they are always interesting; so 

 that, though a certain rare species may 

 elude you, you will never be quite dis- 

 appointed. The possibility of seeing 

 one of the rare ones always gives me 

 an indescribably pleasant thrill in watch- 

 ing these birds. I recall one twenty- 

 eighth of May when I found the "rare" 

 bay-breasted warbler, the very common- 

 est species in a small wood where war- 

 blers of half a dozen other species were 

 numerous. 



( hying to the nature of the cover they 

 frequent, these birds may often be seen 

 at very close range, making identifica- 

 tion easy, even in the case of such tiny 

 birds, for all but a few in this family 

 are below the size of a sparrow. But 

 for the most part, a field-glass will be 

 found invaluable ; this chiefly owing to 

 the small size and extreme nervousness 

 of the birds, and the similarity of their 

 calls. The song of the water-thrush 

 (a brook loving warbler) is a beautiful 

 ringing strain not to be confused with 

 any other song-bird. The oven-bird's 

 call of "Teacher, teacher, teacher," is 

 well known and peculiar. The song of 

 the yellow-breasted chat would be re- 

 markable even in the throat of a first 

 cousin of the mocking bird, but for a 

 warbler's song it is astonishing in the ex- 

 treme. However the chat, while classed 

 with this family, departs from the other 

 members in almost every respect, being 

 twice the size of the smaller species, and 

 a perfect eccentric in its habits. The 

 typical warbler song is a rather weak 



