150 



over the water abounds in insect food. In many parts of the country 

 scarcely a bridge but has its pair of Phoebes in the summer. However, 

 the mud nests are not restricted to bridges but are plastered on the slightest 

 projection under the eaves of an outbuilding or even under the family 

 porch. It is a friendly, familiar bird and comes close to man wherever it 

 finds a welcome. Unfortunately its great nests are occasionally the dwelling 

 place of innumerable parasites, in other words bird-lice. The usual course 

 when they appear is to knock the nest down with a stick and apply boiling 

 water. The application of common insect powder to the nest is better. 

 This will kill the parasites and help to retain about the house this easily 

 domesticated and attractive bird. 



459. Olive-sided Flycatcher, fr. — le moucheroll-e aux cotes olive. Nut- 

 tallornis borealis. L, 7-39. Much like a large Phoebe, but with less ohve and vi^ith exten- 

 sive masses of dark colour on either side of the chest. 



Distinctions. In the hand the conspicuous dark patches at the sides of the chest, 

 and the dark under-tail coverts with light tips will separate this species from the Phoebe 

 which it resembles. At the sides of the back, usually concealed under the closed wings, 

 though occasionally displayed over them, are patches of fine silk-like plumage of pure 

 white or cream colour. These will distinguish the Olive-sided from any other species. 



Field Marks. In life the 01ivt-:=;ided looks more hke a dark breasted Kingbird than 

 a Phoebe or other Flycatcher. The dark chest areas separated by a line of white, however, 

 distinguish them with compai-ative pass. When the white silky feathers show over the 

 wings at the sides of the lower back, as sometimes occurs, the species cannot be mis- 

 identified. The call notes are somewhat similar in tone and execution to those of the 

 Crested Flycatcher, but a little attention and experience wiU enable the hearer to dis- 

 tinguish between the two. 



Distribution. North America. Breeds in Canada from the tree limits to the bound- 

 aries of regular cultivation. 



This is typically a bird of the burnt ridges of the north. Its favourite 

 perch is the top of a tall lone stub in the open, from which its loud, pene- 

 trating voice is heard far and wide. In migration it is rather scarce and 

 local in distribution and though great numbers pass through the populous 

 southern counties it is usually regarded as a scarce migrant. 



Economic Status. It is too rare in settled districts to have great 

 economic value, but it is distinctly beneficial. 



461. Wood Pevj^ee. fr. — -le moucherolle verdatre. Myiochanes virens. L, 6-53. 

 Very similar in coloration to the Phoebe but smaller. 



Distinctions. The Wood Pewee can be separated from the Phoebe and other Fly- 

 catchers of comparable size by its short tarsus and long wings, these being decidedly 

 longer than the tail. 



Field Marks. The Pewee never flirts its tail as does the Phoebe. The sides of the 

 breast are also shghtly darker, giving a better defined and narrower light median fine. 

 Its best identification mark, however, is its call-note which is much like that of the Phoebe 

 but drawn out into a long pee-e-weee without appreciable accent but with a rising inflection 

 at the end. The female varies the call by dropping the last note, making it pee-e-e-e. 



Nesting. A well made but slight structure of fine fibres and rootlets covered with 

 lichens and saddled on a branch, 20 to 40 feet from the ground. 



Distribution. It is distributed over nearly all of eastern North America west to 

 the prairies, breeding in Canada wherever found. 



The long-drawn plaintive pee-e-we of this bird is a characteristic sound 

 of the open woodlands in the spring, and after other birds have relapsed 

 into mid-summer silence one still occasionally hears the mournful note. 



