WAflBLERS. 136 



in the manner of a Snow-bird, a loud cTiip^ a chick^ and a few 

 miuor notes of no importance. 



XIII. ICTERIA. 



A, viRENS. Yellow - breasted Chat. Chat, In New 

 England of rare occurrence, and in the three southern States 

 only.* 



a. Seven inches long. Above, bright olive green. Throat 

 and breast, rich yellow. Belly, and superciliary line, white. 

 Lore, black. 



h. The nest is composed of leaves, grasses, strips of bark, 

 etc., and is placed in a thicket, bush, or brier. The eggs aver- 

 age about 1. X-80 of an inch, and are white, sometimes with 

 reddish brown and obscure lilac spots sprinkled over the sur- 

 face (often more thickly about the crown), and sometimes with 

 rather faint lilac blotches only (which are occasionally confined 

 almost entirely to the smaller end), — these being the two 

 extremes of coloration. 



c. Of the remarkable Yellow-breasted Chats I shall here 

 make but brief mention, since they have never fallen under my 

 personal observation, and because of their very rare occur- 

 rence in New England. I have never seen them near Boston, 

 and I know but two instances of their capture here. They 

 reach Pennsylvania " about the first week in May," and inhabit 

 "close thickets of hazel, brambles, vines, and thick under- 

 wood." During the mating-season they perform the most ex- 

 traordinary antics in the air, often at night. 



d. While so doing, and at other times, they utter a great 

 variety of extraordinary sounds, some of which are musical 

 whistles, and others '' like the barking of young puppies," " the 

 mewing of a cat," or equally peculiar noises. Wilson, from 

 whom I have already quoted, says that " all these are uttered 

 with great vehemence, in such different keys, and with such 

 peculiar modulations of voice, as sometimes to seem at a 



* An abundant summer resident of at least regularly. Throughout the 



southern Connecticut, and rather com- remainder of Massachusetts it is, gen- 



mon, also, in certain portions of Essex erally speaking, a rare bird. It has 



County, Massachusetts, to the north- been found breeding in two places in 



ward of which it is not known to occur, Berksliire County. — W. B. 



