WOOD WARBLERS 429 



chest with necklace of black streaks ; orbital ring white or yellowish ; 



crown black, feathers edged with gray ; rest of upper parts 



gray. Adult female and young in fall : similar, but black 



replaced by gray tinged with olive. Young female : chest 



markings sometimes obsolete. Young, first plumage : upper 



parts brownish, gray below the surface ; wings with two 



buffy bars ; sides of head, throat, and chest buff y brown ; 



rest of under parts yellow. Male: length (skins) 4.76-5.17, Fig. 539. 



wing 2.54-2.64, tail 2.15-2.26, bill .40-44. Female: length Canadian War- 



(skins) 4.57-4.91, wing 2.38-2.54, tail 2.00-2.10, bill .:!9-.45. ^^^''' _ 



Distribution. — Breeds in Canadian zone of northeastern North America, 

 from Lake Winnipeg, Hudson Bay, southern Labrador, and Newfoundland 

 south to southern New England, Wisconsin, and the Alleghanies ; casually 

 to Colorado ; winters from Mexico south to South America. 



Nest. — In clumps of weeds or tussocks of grass in swampy woods, made 

 of leaves and lined witli pine needles, rootlets, and horsehair. Fggs : o to 

 5, white or buffy white, spotted around larger end with reddish brown and 

 lilac, usually mixed with a few black specks or pen lines. 



GENUS SETOPHAGA. 



General Characters. — Bill about half as long as head, much depressed, 

 broad at base, sharply ridged for basal half or more, straight, decurved at 

 tip ; rictal bristles reaching beyond nostrils ; wings pointed, tail long and 

 fan-shaped, with broad flat feathers widening at ends ; feet slender; tarsus 

 with scutella distinct. 



KEY TO ADULT MALES. 



1. Under parts mainly white, with orange patches . . ruticilla, p. 429. 

 T. Under parts mainly dark rose red picta, p. 430. 



687. Setophaga ruticilla {Linn.). American Bedstart. 



Adult male. — Black with bluish gloss, except for white belly and 

 under tail coverts, and salmon or orange patches on sides of breast, 

 wings, and tail. Adult female : black of male replaced by 

 grayish olive, and orange by yellow. Immature male : similar 

 to female, but smaller, browner, and color patches deeper ; 

 after first winter plumage interspersed with black feathers. 

 Immature feinale : like adult female, but gray more brownish, 

 throat and chest tinged with brownish buff ; yellow of breast f^^"*^0 

 less distinct, and that on wings partly or wholly concealed. 

 Young, first plumage : upper parts grayish brown ; under parts grayish 

 white, pale gray on chest ; breast without yellow ; wings and tail like 

 older birds, but with two whitish or Yellowish bands. Male : length 

 (skins) 4.61-5.00, wing 2.40-2.64, tail 2.05-2.28, bill .28-35. Female: 

 length (skins) 4.41-4.7V). wing 2.2S-2.60, tail 1.9;5-2.28. bill .31-.35. 



JDistribntion. — Breeds from British Columbia and Fort Simpson to the 

 Gulf of Mexico :\\u\ from the Atlantic west regularly to the Great Basin ; 

 castially to California, Oregon, Arizona, and Lower California; winters 

 in the West Indies, and from southern Mexico to northern South Amer- 

 ica. 



Nest. — Cup-shaped, compact, made largely of plant fibers and strips of 

 bark and web, 7 to ;5() feet from the ground. Eggs : •> to 5. white, green- 

 ish or grayish, spotted chiefly around larger end with brown and lilac. 



Food. — Insects. 



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