216 BULLETIN 2 03, UNITED STATES NATIONAL ]VIUSEUM 



Its dimensions were : outside, 4 inches wide by 2l^ deep ; inside, 1% 

 inches wide by 1 inch deep. 



Two years later, Philipp and Bowdish (1919) found four nests in 

 northern New Brunswick. "They were in rather high spruce trees, 

 within two or three feet of the extreme top, usually as near the top 

 as suitable site and cover could be secured. All were built in very 

 thick foliage, against the main stem of the tree, resting lightly on 

 twigs and foliage, but fairly secured thereto by webs, and were en- 

 tirely invisible from the ground, in every case." The nests were from 

 35 to 40 feet above the ground, and were not substantially different 

 in size and construction from that described by Dr. Merriam. They 

 add that the thick lining of hair, feathers, and a little fur, all smoothly 

 felted, serves to distinguish the nests from those of the black-poll 

 and myrtle warblers, and note that the nest tree is usually "fairly 

 openly situated, at least as to one side, although this is not always the 

 case, since other pairs watched were very evidently nesting in trees 

 where it was much more difficult to detect them." 



Eichard C. Harlow has sent me the data for seven nests of the Cape 

 May warbler that he collected in Tabusintac, New Brunswick, in 

 1919. Two of these were 55 feet from the ground in a fir, and the 

 others were 35, 45, 50, 55, and 60 feet up, respectively, in black spruces. 

 All were in the very topmost shelters of the trees, and three of them 

 were in heavy forests, the others being on the edges. In other respects 

 they were similar to those described above. The females sat very 

 closely until almost touched, and then dropped down to the ground. 



The nest found by James Bond (MS.) on Mount Desert Island, 

 Maine, was against the trunk of a red spruce 38 feet above ground 

 and about 4 feet from the extreme top of the tree. In construction 

 it was similar to those described above. In his published (1937) 

 paper the tree was said to be a black spruce, but he now writes to me 

 that it was a red spruce and that there were no black spruces in the 

 immediate vicinity; these two spruces are difficult to distinguish. 



Dr. Paul Harrington, of Toronto, writes to me that he found a nest 

 of the Cape May warbler in an open spruce forest near Dorcas Bay, 

 Bruce Peninsula, on June 12, 1934. "The tree was about 35 feet high, 

 a typical 'church spire.' Near the top was a heavy clump, but I 

 could see nothing that indicated a nest ; when I put my hand in the 

 heavy needles near the trunk a bird popped out and straight 

 down. * * * I carefully groped about and eventually found the 

 nest, built near the trunk in the uppermost clump of needles." 



Eggs. — Mr. Harlow tells me that the Cape May warbler lays from 

 4 to 9 eggs to a set. The larger numbers must be very rare, but 6 or 7 

 seem to be the commonest numbers among my records, and sets of 4 

 seem to be uncommon. The eggs vary in shape from ovate to short 



