Western Warbling Vireo 433 



pair collected 22nd to 24th May, 1899 (Aiken) ; Yiima, seen by Miss 

 Patten, May 27th, 1905 (Henderson) ; Boulder, one male taken May 

 30th, 1904, by L. C. Bragg, and Wray, one male taken May 26th, 1906, 

 W. C. Ferril (H. G. Smith.) Allen (72) states, "movmtains of Colorado 

 up to 11,000 feet," but this seems based on an error, as it has not since 

 been met with away from the eastern plains. 



Habits. — These birds are found mostly along timbered 

 streams, and are often met with near dwelling-houses 

 in groves and among shade trees ; they have an animated 

 song, consisting, according to Goss, of a few clear warbling 

 notes repeated in a loud, animated and almost continuous 

 strain while seated on the topmost branches of a tree. 

 Their food consists chiefly of insects, which they hunt 

 for among the leaves and branches and also catch on 

 the wing, but small berries are also relished. Their 

 nests are suspended from the forks of the trees ; they are 

 made of fibres, vine stalks, old leaves and spider threads, 

 woven in and fastened together with saliva and lined 

 v/ith fine stems and rootlets. They are hung by material 

 of the same kind fastened to the rim. The eggs, three 

 to five in number, are pure white, thinly and irregularly 

 speckled with reddish-brown, and measure about '82 x '56. 



Western Warbling Vireo. 

 Vireosylva gilva swainsoni. 



A.O.U. Checklist no 627a — Colorado Records — Allen 72, pp. 149, 

 156, 176 ; Aiken 72, p. 198 ; Henshaw 75, p. 221 ; Scott 79, p. 93 ; 

 Minot 80, p. 229 ; Drew 81, p. 89 ; 85, p. 15 ; Tresz 81, p. 288 ; Allen & 

 Brewster 83, p. 160 ; Beckham 85, p. 141 ; Morrison 88, p. 73 ; Kellogg 

 90, p. 89 ; McGregor 97, p. 39 ; Cooke 97, pp. 19, 112, 218 ; Keyser 

 02, pp. 198, 230 ; Henderson 03, p. 237 ; 09, p. 239 ; Warren 06, p. 23 ; 

 Gilman 07, p. 194 ; Rockwell 08, p. 176. 



Description. — Male — General colour dark slaty-grey, darkest on 

 the head, washed with olive-green on the back and edges of the wings ; 

 the inner webs of the wing and tail-feathers edged with white ; a white 

 superciliary line from the base of the bill to above the ear-coverts, 

 and an indistinct line of dusky below ; under-parts whitish, faintly 

 washed with olive-yellow, especially on the flanks ; tenth (outer) 



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