280 BULLETIN 203, UNITED STATES NATIONAL IVTUSEUM 



Voice. — The simple, but pleasing song of the black-throated gray 

 warbler is described in Rathbim's notes as follows: "The song as 

 ordinarily sung consists of three rather quickly given notes, of a 

 somewhat lisping quality, that rise and fall but are alike in construc- 

 tion and a closing fourth note that may slur upward with a decided 

 accent, or may fall. The real construction of this song is lost unless 

 the singer is close by, for then it will be found that each of the first 

 three notes is a double one. It is a clear and pleasing song, of good 

 carrying quality, and somewhat smooth when heard at a distance. 

 During the nesting season the males will be heard in song much of 

 the time during the day. The habit of the bird is to perch on or near 

 the top of a young evergreen tree and sing repeatedly without shift- 

 ing its perch, then to fly to another tree of similar character and 

 repeat its actions." 



As I heard it in Washington, I wrote it swee, swee, ker-sioee, sick, 

 or swee, swee, swee, per-swee-ee, sic. Dr. Walter P. Taylor writes 

 it in his notes zee zeegle, seegle, secf/Ie, sort, tseeee. Grinnell and 

 Storer (1924) describe it as "a rather lazy, drawling utterance, deep- 

 toned rather than shrill. Wee-zy, wee-zy, wee-zy, wee-zy-weet; 

 iseioey, tsewey, tsewey, tsewey-tsew ; zuee, zuee, zuee, soop' sl-st-weezy, 

 weezy we-tsu; oweze-weze-ioeze-weze-chur, are syllabifications written 

 by us at different times when individual birds were singing close at 

 hand. There are modifications in the song; sometimes the terminal 

 syllable is omitted and again only three of the two-syllabled notes 

 are given. The ordinary call is a rather low, one-syllabled chit.'''' 



Mrs. Bailey (1902) says that "its song is a simple warbler lay, 

 zee-ee-zee-ee, ze, ze, ze, with the quiet woodsy quality of virens and 

 caendescens, so soothing to the ear." Bowles (1902) heard an 

 unusual song that "was on the principle of a yellow-throated vireo 

 or a scarlet tanager; but the quality of a blue-headed vireo in addi- 

 tion, making a very strong and rich song." 



Field marks. — The gray back, white breast with a few black streaks, 

 two white wing bars, and, particularly, the conspicuous black and 

 white pattern of the head and throat will make this warbler almost 

 unmistakable. The tiny yellow spot in front of the eye is visible only 

 at close quarters. Young birds and adults in the fall show the same 

 characters more or less obscured by brownish edgings. The female 

 has a white throat instead of a black one. 



Enemies. — Jays of different species and crows evidently take heavy 

 toll of the eggs and young, as they are persistent nest hunters and 

 often have their own broods to feed near by. Bowles (1902) says 

 that "one pair of California jays seemed to have located every nest 

 that was built in a gulch where they were building their own nest." 

 One of the Grinnell and Storer (1924) party "interrupted an attack 



