CHARACTERISTICS OF WARBLERS 199 



the species are confined to Middle or South America ; and 

 Dendrceca, the leading type of this group, is the largest, most 

 beautiful, and most attractive genus of North American birds, 

 preeminently characteristic of this country. 



I shall be more particular in speaking of the several sub- 

 divisions of the family ; but I wish to bring into this sketch of 

 the Warblers at large some touches to show their family traits. 

 I said that Dendrceca was a "beautiful" genus ; and I am sure 

 that the Warblers, taken altogether, are the most attractive of 

 our birds to every lover of birds for their own sakes — to every 

 one who delights in those aesthetic emotions which the inter- 

 pretation of bird-life never fails to excite. We have just seen 

 what a problem they oflfer to the strict scientist ; the most de- 

 termined utilitarian will find them not beneath his notice, for 

 their good services in the interests of agriculture are imuieas- 

 urable ; the naturalist derives from them never-failing gratifi- 

 cation of his sense of the beautiful, whether he regards their 

 forms, their colors, or their habits. They are prominent among 

 the birds that awaken and stimulate the enthusiasm of the 

 young ornithologist, nor do they cease to feed the ardor of 

 maturer years ; they challenge interest perpetually, and en- 

 gage attention in their endlessly varied aspects. They are the 

 universal favorites of the amateur ; every collector is keen on 

 the scent of the "rare Warbler"; emulation quickens the quest 

 of its nest and eggs; the rivalry is to discover some unrecorded 

 trait, some unrecognized plumage, some note unheard before; 

 and the specimen itself is among the treasures of every cabi- 

 net. Has any one stopped to think what our ornithology would 

 be with this life of the woodland left out ? 



With few exceptions, the SylvicoUdw are clad in variegated 

 colors — always pretty and tasteful, often brilliant and strikingly 

 effective ; even when the tints are subdued, as in the oliva- 

 ceous species, there is a pleasurable harmony of color, in keep- 

 ing with shy and modest demeanor ; while some of the War- 

 blers may boast of the most exquisite and delicate of hues, 

 next alter those that glitter in the sheen of iridescence. Most 

 Warblers, moreover, have several suits of color ; the sexes are 

 seldom alike, the young are different again, and so many are 

 the changes, that here is a study by itself, to recognize the same 

 bird under its color-variations. The plumage of the Warblers 

 may be used to illustrate a very broad and important truth that 

 bears upon the question of species itself. Those familiar with 

 the subject will recall the fact that very few of our Warblers 



