148 BULLETIN 2 03, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM 



ing slightly smaller but with longer bill. Adult male with more yel- 

 low on the under parts and less black or blackish on the lores and 

 malar region; the dark collar across the jugulum narrow, obscure, 

 often nearly wanting; the chest pale, diffuse russet, without obvious 

 markings." He admits that no one of these characters is quite con- 

 stant, the best one being the depth and definition of the reddish brown 

 on the chest. And he suggests that the distribution of the two forms 

 in the breeding season may be roughly correlated with the distribu- 

 tion of Vsnea in the north and of Tillandsia in the south, in which the 

 two forms, respectively, seem to prefer to build their nests. This, 

 however, is not strictly accurate or universal (for example, see some 

 remarks by M. G. Vaiden, under the preceding form, on the breeding 

 of this species in two different localities in Mississippi). 



Arthur T. Wayne (1910) says of the haunts of the southern bird in 

 South Carolina: "As soon as the sweet gum trees begin to bud, the 

 song of this beautiful bird is heard. It heralds the approach of spring 

 and is one of the first warblers to arrive which does not winter. The 

 range of this species in the breeding season is entirely governed by 

 the presence or absence of the Spanish moss, and where the moss is 

 growing in profusion the birds are common, but where the moss is 

 absent the birds are absolutely not to be found." 



A. H. Howell (1932) calls this southern subspecies "an abundant 

 spring and fall migrant [in Florida] ; a common summer resident 

 south at least to Osceola County ; and a rare winter rasident, chiefly 

 in the central and southern part. Owing to the presence of a few 

 wintering individuals, it is difficult to determine when spring migra- 

 tion begins. * * * Positive evidence of migration is furnished by 

 the appearance of large numbers striking the light on Sombrero Key, 

 March 3, 1889, when 250 birds were observed and 30 were killed. This 

 species is one of the most numerous and regular visitants at the light- 

 houses on the east coast and on the Keys." Many of these were, of 

 course, the northern race. Of the haunts of the southern race, he 

 says: "The dainty little Parula Warbler is found most frequently in 

 cypress swamps or heavily timbered bottomlands, and to a lesser extent 

 in the upland hammocks. The abundant Spanish moss on the trees 

 furnishes ideal nesting sites for the birds." 



Nesting. Except for the fact that the so-called Spanish moss {Til- 

 landsia) replaces the beard moss ( Vsnea) ,, the nesting habits of the two 

 races are very much alike. A. T. Wayne (1910) says that in South 

 Carolina "the nest is always built in the festoons of the Spanish moss, 

 from eight to more than one hundred feet from the ground, and is 

 constructed of the flower of the moss and a few pieces of fine, dry 

 grass." The nesting habits in Florida are very similar. 



