128 



ORNITHOLOGIST 



[Vol. 7-No. 16 



mers. Their happy, chirpy notes, quick 

 flights, sporting with each other, their 

 morning bath and winsome ways, were as 

 a golden ray of sunshine that brightened 

 the every day cares of Hfe ; and here let 

 me add the more one \nll encourage tliem- 

 selves in gleaning a little here and gather- 

 ing there, in a few months they would be 

 astonished at the amount of information 

 gained from Nature's never ceasing won- 

 ders which lie all around us or near oiu' 

 reach if we will but seek and gather. — 3Irs. 

 C. 31. Crowell, Hayieards, Cal. 



Traill's Flycatcher. 



ITS NESTING HABITS IN OHIO. 



Traill's Flycatcher, (Empidonaxjnisillris 

 trailU), arrives in Ohio the last of April or 

 the first of May, passing northward along 

 the margm of the streams. So far as I 

 have observed, it seems to be more shy and 

 restless than others of the genus. Its 

 presence is made known by its short and 

 pevish notes, uttered at intervals as it flits 

 from bush to bush or across a stream. 



About the latter part of May they re- 

 tire to their favorite breeding resorts, 

 which are always in low grounds, and are 

 especially fond of thick willows and alders 

 along the banks of running streams. These 

 localities seem to be characteristic of this 

 species ; at least I have never found them 

 elsewhere during the breeding season. In 

 the vicinity of Columbus they are, appar- 

 ently, a common Summer resident, breed- 

 ing abundantly. The bird was not known 

 to breed in Ohio until its nest was discov- 

 ered by Dr. J. M. Wheaton, in June, 1874. 

 in this vicinity. In 1879 I obtained four 

 nests with eggs; in 1880, six nests with 

 eggs; in 1881, between May 28 and June 

 17, I obtained eighteen nests containing 

 eggs. The locality was in a thick growth 

 of alders bordering a canal, three miles 

 north of the city. None of these nests 

 were placed higher than eight feet from 

 the ground, and iu most eases from two to 

 four. In nearlv all instances thev were 



built in an upright fork, the small twigs 

 that suiTounded them were made available 

 to secure them firmly in their place by 

 being encii-cled with stringy fibres. 



Ten nests before me have a strong re- 

 semblance to the usual structure of the 

 Yellow Warbler, (Dendrceca cestiva,) but 

 probably lack in compactness and neatness. 

 The external or greater jjortion of the nest 

 is composed of hempen fibres, internally 

 lined in true Flycatcher stjde with fine 

 grasses. In some, however, there is a 

 slight lining of horse-hair, and of the 

 downi from the milk-weed or thistles. A 

 typical nest measures as follows : Height, 

 two and a half inches ; diameter, three in- 

 ches. The carity is an inch and a half in 

 diameter, and two inches in dejith. In 

 nearly all cases these nests contained but 

 three eggs ; rarely four, and a great many 

 in vai-ying stages of incubation. A nest 

 was often found with one fresh egg and 

 two others partly incubated, showing that 

 the eggs were, in some cases, laid on alter- 

 nate days, and sometimes as late as a week 

 after the first was deposited, as is often 

 the case with our Cuckoos. The ground 

 color of these eggs is extremely variable. 

 In some it is of a cream color, in others 

 approaching buif. In four sets before me 

 there is a striking variation in the distribu- 

 tion of the markings. They are usually 

 marked chiefly at the larger end with large 

 blotches of red and reddish-brown. This, 

 however, is only characteristic in one of 

 these sets, while in the others the markings 

 are simply very small dots, sparingly 

 sprinkled over the surface, and iu some 

 these dottings are scarcely visible, giving 

 them the ai^pearance of an almost unspot- 

 ted surface. Six eggs measiu'e respective- 

 ly 72 X 5.5, 70 X 53, 70 x 52, 64 x 53. 69 x 52, 

 70 X 53. There is scarcely any perceptible 

 difference between the eggs of Trailli and 

 those of Ac/idiciis. The western eggs of 

 Tra'dli probably have a darker ground, 

 and the spots are more vivid, but I do not 

 believe any one can tell them apart with 

 certaintv. — Oliver Davie, Columbus, Ohio. 



