Sixteenth Annual Meeting. 33 



XoTKS oN THE NESTING II AJB ITS OF THE YELLOW-THROATED VIREO. 



( Lcmivireo flavifrons.) 



I!V N. S. (.OSS. 



On the 9th of May, 1877, I found in the timber near Neosho Falls, Kansas, a nest of 

 the birds ( a pendent one, as all the vim is' nests I have found are ), attached to branches 

 of a very small horizontal limb of a Large hickory tree, about twenty feet from the 

 ground and ten feet below the limbs that formed the tree-top. In the forks of the tree 

 the Cooper hawks were nesting, and I discovered the bird and the nest in watching the 

 hawks — or rather, the man I had hired to climb the tree to the hawk's nest. The little 

 bird at first Hew oft* but on his near approach, returned and suffered him to bend the 

 limb towards the tree and cover her with his hand on the nest. The twig was quickly 

 broken, and the bird and nest lowered by a line in a small covered basket taken to col- 

 lect the eggs of the hawks. Such manifestations of courage and love, so rare and excep- 

 tional, touched me to the heart, and it was hard to make up my mind to rob and kill the 

 bird and her mate scolding in the tree-top. I can only offer in extenuation that they 

 were the first I had met with in the State, and the desire strong to have them in my col- 

 lection. The nest was made of and fastened to the limb with silk-like threads, and bits 

 of cotton from plants, fastened together by saliva and partially covered or dotted over 

 with lichen, and lined with small stems of weeds and grass; a beautiful nest, in plain 

 sight — nothing near to cover or hide it from view. There were three eggs, also one egg 

 of the cow blackbird (Molothus alar); one of the eggs was broken by the bird in her 

 struggle to free herself from grasp while in nest. Color, pure white, with a few scatter- 

 ing small spots toward the large end, of reddish brown. Measurement of each, .79x.58 

 of an inch. < )f four taken from a nest ( a full set ), .78x.57, .80x.58, .79x.58, 78x.57. 



I have since noticed the birds in the woodlands on several occasions, and on the 18th 

 of May, 1883, while strolling along the south bank of the Kansas river near Topeka in 

 the timber skirting the stream, I had the pleasure to find a pair of the birds building a 

 nest in a honey locust, about sixteen feet from the ground and eight feet from the 

 body of the tree ; the nest was fastened to forks of a small horizontal branch from a 

 main limb. The frame of the nest appeared to be completed; the birds, busy at work, 

 the female lining the nest with small, hair-like stems, the male covering the outside 

 with soft, lint-like fibrous stripping from plants, closely resembling the limb and its 

 surroundings, and dotting it over with lichen — so happy in the thought that he was not 

 only beautifying the home of his lady bird, but protecting her by his artistic skill from 

 the casual gaze of others. Notwithstanding the fact that she had selected an open and 

 exposed position, he could not refrain from expressing his joy at intervals during the 

 work, in snatches of bis sweetest notes. The female, more watchful, sighted me and 

 gave notice of the intrusion. Quick as thought, the birds were away. The male, alight- 

 ing near the top of an adjoining tree, at once poured forth his song in loudest notes, no 

 doubt thinking by attracting my attention to him I would lose sight of the nest. Know- 

 ing it was too late for concealment, and that any attempt would only increase their sus- 

 picions and stop or delay the work, 1 carelessly walked nearer, in order to have a better 

 view, and laid down on my back in an open space. In a short time the female returned, 

 hopped about in the tree, inspected me closely from the lower limbs, flew away and re- 

 turned several times before bringing material or venturing to the nest; but the moment 

 she did so, his song was hushed and the work actively resumed. As the female stood upon 

 the top of the nest with her head down and inside, I could not see the manner of ar- 



