LAND BIRDS. G35 



The nest resembles that of the Maryland Yellowthroat, but is very 

 carefully hidden, so that it is seldom found. It is placed invariably upon 

 the ground, and the eggs are white or creamy white, speckled with brown. 

 They average .72 by .56 inches. 



TECHNICAL DESCRIPTION. 



Adult male: Forehead and sides of head black, with a bright yellow stripe over and 

 behind the eye; rest of upper parts, including wings and tail, olive-green; entire under parts 

 clear bright yellow. Wings and tail unmarked with lighter patches. Female very similar, 

 but the black head markings sometimes more or less obscured by gray edgings. 



Leuiith T) to ,").8."> inches; wing 2.55 to 2.80; tail 1.90 to 2.20. 



291. Connecticut Warbler. Oporornis agilis (Wils.). (678) 



Synonyms: Sylvia agilis, Wils., 1812. — Trichas agilis, Nutt., 1840. — Oporornis agilis, 

 Raird, 1858.— Geothlypis agilis, A. O. U. Check-list, 1886. 



The olive green back, wings and tail, without spots, ash-gray or blue- 

 gray head and neck, and yellow belly, are common to this species and the 

 Mourning Warbler, but the latter, when adult, always shows some black 

 on the breast and has no white about the eye, while the Connecticut Warbler 

 has no black on the breast and always has a white ring around the eye. 



Distribution. — Eastern North America, breeding north of the United 

 States (Manitoba and Ontario). Northern South America in winter. 



This is one of our rarer warblers, seldom met with except during migra- 

 tion and then only by accident or after thorough and intelligent search. 

 It appears to prefer tangled growths of weeds, briars and grasses on low 

 ground, and in spring is seldom found far from such locations. 



In its habits it is somewhat like the Maryland Yellow-throat, but is 

 far less common and much more shy, so that it is seldom seen. Specimens 

 have been taken in many parts of the state, from Wayne county, in the 

 southeast, to Ontonagon county, in the extreme western part of the Upper 

 Peninsula. At the latter place it is not unlikely that the species nests, 

 for a female was taken in the Porcupine Mountains July 27, 1904, by ]\Ir. 

 Maclean, of the University of Michigan expedition, and this bird had the 

 large bare space and thickened skin on the abdomen which is so character- 

 istic of birds which have recently incubated. This female, moreover, was 

 accompanied by young of the year. On August 1, in the same vicinity, a 

 family of four was seen in a clearing by Mr. McCreary. 



liike may of the warblers, this species seems to be much more common 

 in autumn than in spring, and most of our records are for September 

 and October. However, Mr. Covert states that in the spring of 1888 it 

 was very common about Ann Arbor, where he secured about fifteen speci- 

 mens. He calls it a very late arrival and says it seems to delight in wet 

 days, singing most w^hen the woods are drip))ing. In the spring of 1907 

 it again seemed to be quite common and N. A. Wood took two specimens 

 on May 18, and two more on May 30. 



Mr. Seton Thompson describes its song in Manitoba as suggested ])y 

 the syllables "beecher-beecher-beecher-beecher-beecher-beecher. He 

 states that it is somewhat like the song of the Ovenbird, but different in 

 being of the same pitch throughout, instead of beginning in a whisper, 

 and increasing the em})hasis and strength with each ])air of notes to the 

 last (liirds of Manitoba, page 622). This writer found the nest at Duck 

 Mountain, Maiiit()l)a, and describes it in the Auk, Vol. I, 1884, pp. 192-19;-{. 



