EASTERN SUMMER TANAGER 499 



in diameter and 2 inches in height; it has an internal depth of barely- 

 half an inch. 



Eggs. — Four eggs usually constitute the set for summer tanager, 

 but often only three are laid and rarely as many as five. They arc 

 ovate in shape, with some variations toward elongate or short ovate. 

 The shell is moderately glossy. William George F. Harris has given 

 me the following description of the eggs: The ground color may be "pale 

 Nile blue," "Etain blue," "pale Niagara green," or "pale glaucous 

 green." This is speckled, spotted, blotched, and occasionally clouded, 

 with "Argus brown," "Brussels brown," "raw umber," "chestnut 

 brown," "mummy brown," or "Prout's brown," with undertones of 

 "light mouse gray" or "Quaker drab." There is great variation in 

 size and arrangement of the markings; in general, they are well dis- 

 tributed over the entire egg, but there is a tendency to concentrate 

 toward the large end, where sometimes they are confluent and form a 

 solid wreath or cap. The gray or drab undertones are as a rule not 

 particularly prominent. The markings are generally bolder than on 

 the eggs of the scarlet or the hepatic tanagers. Rarely, a set may 

 partially or entirely lack the blue coloring and have instead a creamy 

 white ground color with the usual brown markings. 



The measurements of 50 eggs average 23.1 by 17.1 millimeters; the 

 eggs showing the four extremes measure 25.4 by 17.8, 24.9 by 18.3, 

 21.1 by 16.3, and 23.5 by 16.1 millimeters. 



Young. — The period of incubation for the summer tanager is 

 said to be 12 days. Information on the development and care of the 

 young seems to be lacking, beyond the fact, mentioned by Weston 

 (MS.), that both sexes are known to feed the young. 



Plumages. — D wight (1900) describes the juvenal plumage of the 

 summer tanager as: "Above, ruddy or yellow tinged sepia-brown with 

 darker edgings and feather centres producing a faintly streaked ap- 

 pearance. Wings deep olive-brown with olive-yellow or greenish 

 edgings, usually reddish tinged on the outer primaries, the coverts 

 duller, the tertiaries paler. Tail bright olive-green or olive-3'ellow 

 often reddish tinged basally, the shafts sepia-brown. Below, dull 

 white tinged with sulphur-jellow on abdomen and crissum, distinctly 

 and broadly streaked on the throat, breast and sides with deep olive- 

 brown." 



The sexes are alike in the juvenal plumage and nearly alike in the 

 first winter plumage. The postjuvenal molt in July and August 

 involves the contour plumage and the wing coverts, but not the rest 

 of the wings nor the tail. This produces the first winter plumage, 

 which Dwight describes as: "Above pale olive-green with a strong 

 orange tinge, reddish in many specimens. Below chrome-yellow often 

 strongly tinged with orange especially on the crissum and 'edge of the 



