EASTERN YELLOW-THROATED WARBLER 355 



Behavior— There is much that is reminiscent of the brown creeper 

 in the habits of the yellow-throated warbler. Its actions are delib- 

 erate and methodical, with none, or very little, of the nervous energy 

 so characteristic of many species of Dendroica. As a result it is easier 

 to watch than many other warblers, and its technique of hunting fre- 

 quently brings it close to the observer. Pearson and the Brimleys 

 (1942) state that it confines its creeping search to the limbs of trees, 

 omitting the trunks altogether. However I have seen this warbler in 

 my yard, feeding on the trunks of both pines and oaks. In this pos- 

 ture, it acts almost exactly like the black-and-white warbler {Mniotilta 

 varia) and the brown creeper {CertMa familiaris) . D. J. Nicholson 

 of Orlando, Fla. (1929) , mentions that he has seen them feeding on the 

 "mossy trunks" of trees. 



Milton P. Skinner (1928) writes: 



Yellow-throated warblers are gentle and friendly, but are not really socially 

 inclined, either toward other members of their own kind or toward other species. 



* * * In the trees, their movements are quick, nervous and active, and they 

 are very neat and trim in appearance for they spend much time in preening 



* * * As usual with warblers, these little birds are skillful insect catchers, 

 and eat house flies, mosquitoes, ants, crickets, beetles and many other varieties 

 of the smaller insects. Once I saw one on an artificial feeding station eating 

 bread crumbs. 



These warblers seem even fonder of bathing than most other warblers. They 

 go regularly and often to their baths, and after bathing they spend several 

 minutes carefully preening their feathers. 



Voice — ^The song of the yellow-throated warbler is one of its dis- 

 tinctive characteristics. Completely unlike the thready, insectlike 

 notes of many of its family, it is difficult to describe verbally, and 

 interpretations of it must necessarily vary according to impressions 

 made on human ears. That it is loud, with a definitely ringing charac- 

 ter, is agreed upon by all, and in this respect resembles the beautiful 

 song of the prothonotary warbler (Protonotaria citrea) another 

 dweller of the cypress lagoons. 



R. T. Peterson (1939) says that the song is "slightly suggestive" of 

 those of the indigo bunting {Passerina cyanea) and the Louisiana 

 water-thrush {Seiunis motaciUa)^ although I had not noticed this 

 resemblance, and describes the notes as "starting with several clear, 

 slurred notes' and dropping slightly down the scale." This is true; 

 the preliminary or "clear" notes vary in number from five to eight, 

 and are run together at the end. F. M. Weston (MS.) says that there 

 are "several distinct repetitions of a single note, ending weakly in an 

 anticlimax trill," also a satisfactory description. Rendered into words 

 (always inaccurate and often misleading) it has been written as ching- 

 ching-ching-chicker-churwee. F. M. Chapman (1907) remarks that 

 he was familiar with the song for some years before being impressed 



