332 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PASSERES— OSCINES. 



in New England, with snow, in April and November ; winters abundantly from the Carolinas 

 to Texas, and in the West Indies. 



D. p. hypochry'sea ? (Gr. vno, hupo, under ; ^pvcreor, cJiritseos, golden.) Yellow-bellied 

 Red-poll Warbler. Said to differ in being more brightly and continuously yellow on the 

 under parts, with the streaks confined mostly to the sides, broadly tear-shaped instead of linear, 

 reddish instead of dusky; lower eyelid yellow, not whitish; back brighter olive. "Atlantic 

 States, N. to Hudson's Bay. Breeds from eastern Maine, New Brunswick, and Nova Scotia 

 northward ; winters in the South Atlantic and Gulf States," along with true palmarum. Ac- 

 cording to this, hypoclirysea should be the common bird of the Atlantic States, and what is 

 above described as irne palmarum should be the bird of the interior. But I have little f\iith in 

 the validity of the physical characters assigned, and none in the geographical distinctions 

 sought to be established. 



D. vigors'!. (To N. A. Vigors, the English quinarian naturalist.) Pine Warbler. 

 Pine-Creeping Warbler. Pine Creeper. "Vigors' Vireo." Adult (J : Uniform 

 yeUowish-olive above, yellow below, paler or white on belly and under tail-coverts, shaded 

 and sometimes obsoletely streaked with darker on the sides ; superciliary line yellow ; wing- 

 bars white ; tail-blotches confined to two outer pairs of feathers, large, oblique. 9 and 

 young : Similar, duller ; sometimes merely olive-gray above and sordid whitish below, or even 

 brownish-gray above and brownish- white below, thus making very dingy, non-committal ob- 

 jects. The variations in precise shade are interminable ; but the species may always be known 

 by lack ot any special sharp markings whatever, except the superciliary line ; and by combina- 

 tion of white wing-bars with large oblique tail-spots confined to two outer pairs of feathers. 

 One of the largest species, as well as most simply colored ; length 5.50-5.75 ; extent 

 8.50-9.00; wing 2.75-3.00; tail 2.40; tarsus 0.70; bill 0.45. Eastern U. S. to the 

 Plains ; N. only to Manitoba, Ontario, and New Brunswick. Breeds throughout its range, 

 and abounds in winter in the Southern States ; is nearly resident, being sometimes seen 

 in the Middle States in midwinter, and in New England early and late, with snow. 

 Nests high in pine-trees ; eggs 0.68 X 0.52, not peculiar in ground-color or markings. 

 D. pinus of authors, as of all previous eds. of the Key, after Sylvia pinus WiLS., 1811, ante- 

 dated by S. pinus Lath., 1790, which latter is now Helminthophila pinus : for full synonymy 

 see CouES, B. Col. Vail., i, 1878, p. 251. Sylvia vigorsii Aud., Orn. Biog., i, p. 1.53, 

 1832, named Vireo vigorsii on pi. 30, and in Nutt., Man., i, 1832, p. 318 ; Bendroica vigorsii 

 St., Auk, Oct., 1885, p 343; A. 0. U. Lists, 1886-95, No. 671. 



*^* Thus passing in review the 24 " solid " species of Dendroeca, with four varieties 

 lately introduced, I may allude to two species described by early authors, but never identified : 

 1. Sylvia montana Wils. This I have given (in the orig. ed., p. 105) some reasons for sup- 

 posing to be a young D. virens. 2. Sylvia carbonata Aud. A strongly-marked bird, the 

 like of which has never been seen since ; conjectured to be a hybrid of I), tigrina and D. 

 striata. Perhaps it is an ofispring of the imagination, stimulated by the artistic sense of its 

 originator, as possibly Megulus cuvieri and certainly Sylvia rathbonia are also. 

 SIU'RUS. (Gr. o-ft'o), seio, I wave or brandish ; olpa, oura, tail.) AVagtail Warblers. 

 In general form scarcely distinguishable from Dendroeca ; larger in size, different in pattern of 

 coloration, in habits, gait, and nidification. Bill ordinary. Rictal bristles short but evident. 

 Wings pointed, much longer than tail. Tarsus longer than middle toe and claw. Tail nearly 

 even, with rather acute feathers, and long, copious under coverts. Neither wings nor tail parti- 

 colored. Above olivaceous, with or without head-markings, otherwise uniform ; below white, 

 buffy, or yellowish, profusely streaked. Legs slender, usually pale-colored. Habits terrestrial 

 to some extent; nest on ground; eggs white, spotted. Vocal powers pre-eminent. Gait am- 

 bulatorial, not saltatorial, and some other traits decidedly Motacilline. (A. 0. U. spells 

 Seiurus.) 



