TROGLODYTID^— THE WEENS AND MOCKING-THEUSHES. 95 



Hab. Western United States, east to the border of the wooded region. (Occasionally 

 straggling to Illinois.) 



"Sp. Chae. Tail and winss about equal. Bill shorter than the head. Above reddish 

 brown, darker towards the head, brighter on the rump. Thefeathers everywhere, except 

 on the head and neck, barred with dusky; obscurely so on the back, and still less on the 

 rump. All the tail feathers barred from the base; the contrast more vivid on the exterior 

 ones. Beneath pale fulvous-white, tinged with light brownish across the breast: the pos- 

 terior parts rather dark brown, obscurely banded. Under tail-coverts whitish, with 

 dusky bars. An indistinct line over the eye. eyelids, and loral region whitish. Cheeks 

 brown, streaked with whitish. Length. 4.90; wing, 2.08; tail. 2.00." (.Eist. N. Am. B.) 



Two races of the House Wren occur in Illinois which may be 

 distinguished as follows : 



HotJSE Wken {T.aedon). Above decidedly rusty on the rump and tail, the back umber- 

 brown, a,xi.(i usually not distinctly barred (frequently entirely uniform); in winter, 

 deep reddish umber-brown above, with only the wings and tail distinctly barred. 

 Wins, 1.90—2.15 (2.02; tail, 1.72—2.08 (1.85): culmen, .46—52 (.49); bill from nostril. .32— 

 .37 (.34); tarsus, .60— .70 (.65); middle toe. .45— .54 (.50). 



Paekman's Ween [T. aedon parkmanii). Above rather grayish brown, the rump and 

 tail slightly more rusty, and the back and rump generally very distinctly barred 

 with dusky (very rarely plain). In winter, above dull brown (deeper than in sum- 

 mer), the back still distinctly barred. Wing, 2.— 2.25(2.09); tail, 1.85-2.13 (1. 98); cul- 

 men, .45— .55 (.49); bill from nostril. .30— .40 (.35); tarsus, .60.-70 (.66); middle toe, 

 .47-.54 (.50). 



The two races are by no means well defined, except in extreme 

 cases, but there is an appreciable average difference, as above de- 

 tailed, distinguishing eastern and western specimens ; nor are their 

 relative abundance and distribution within the State well made out. 



Although a bird of very wide geographical range, the House Wren 

 is, for some reason or another, very rare in many parts of southern 

 Illinois. Indeed, during the writer's residence in Wabash county, 

 he never even heard the note of an individual of this species, its 

 place being taken entirely by Bewick's Wren. In the neighboring 

 county of Eichland, however, the House Wren is not uncommon in 

 some localities, but the other species still largely preponderates in 

 numbers ; and the same is the case in Knox county, Indiana, in all 

 localities where the writer has been able to make observations. To 

 the northward, the present species gradually increases in abundance, 

 until finally, in the northern counties of the State the proportional 

 representation of the two is reversed. 



Although having had many opportunities of studying the House 

 Wren in the Atlantic States, where it is a very abundant bird, the 

 writer became most familiar with him in the Far West, where all 



