ORNITHOLOGIST 



— AND — 



OOLOGIST. 



$i.oo per PUBLISHED BY THE FRANK BLAKE WEBSTER COMPANY. 



Annum. established march, 1875. 



Single Copy 

 10 cents. 



Vol. XVII. HYDE PARK, MASS., NOVEMBER, 1892. 



No. II. 



Nest of the Yellow-bellied Fly- 

 catcher. 



One of the most interesting nests and 

 set of eggs that I discovered, and added to 

 my collection, in the season of 1892, was 

 thatof the Yellow-bellied Flycatcher {^Em- 

 pidojiax Flcviventris^ . 



On the 14th of June I was doing some 

 work on a piece of new fallow, on the 

 northeast corner of Wildwood adjoining a 

 swamp composed chiefly of balsam, cedar 

 and black ash timber, when, as my team 

 was resting, I thought I would take 

 another look at the nesting site of the 

 Sharp-shinned Hawk from which on the 

 25th of May I had taken a most beautiful 

 set of eggs ; and also at the small turned- 

 root of a balsam, in a cavity of which 

 some swamp frequenting bird had nested 

 the previous year, as I have observed that 

 when an old nest is removed, the same or 

 some other species often reoccupy the 

 same premises. 



Now I found that the cavity in the root 

 had not been occupied, and as the day 

 was hot, I was stooping down to take 

 some of the cool water from the small 

 pool below, when a small bird flew out 

 past my face and disappeared in the sur- 

 rounding underwood. In a moment I 

 saw the nest from which the bird had 

 glided, and from its composition, and the 

 color of the four fresh eggs that it con- 

 tained, I at once inferred that it was new 

 to me ; but supposed that it was that of 

 some rare warbler, whose identity I was 



then desirous to discover, so I sat down 

 near by to await the bird's return. 



For several minutes no bird either ap- 

 proached the nest or gave a note near by. 

 Then the mournful refrain of a little bird, 

 which I took to be a species of Flycatcher, 

 sounded among the balsam tops, a little 

 distance off, and on discovering the actor 

 itself, I for awhile watched its movements 

 as in true Flycatcher style it darted to and 

 fro after insects, at the same time giving 

 vent to its io-zceep-Wke lament. But not 

 being certain that this was the owner of 

 the nest, I left the place, and in less than 

 an hour afterwards returned and found 

 the bird seated on the nest, where she re- 

 mained till I was within a few feet of her, 

 when she again flew off and I fully identi- 

 fied her as the female Yellow-bellied Fly- 

 catcher. 



The nest was placed in a kind of cavity 

 made in the soft mould in a corner of the 

 "turn-up," and about two feet above the 

 small hollow below. It was formed al- 

 most wholly of moss, lined with fine dry 

 grass and a few pieces of vines. The four 

 fresh eggs were white, with a yellowish 

 tinge, and all more or less spotted with 

 orange-brown. The spotting is nearly al- 

 together on the large end, some being 

 much more spotted than others ; one or 

 two have the end nearly covered, others are 

 ringed, and there are but a few small dots 

 towards the centre. Inside the nest is 

 about two inches across by one in depth. 

 This species has been but rarely noticed 

 in Canada. In its general appearance it 



Copyright, 1892, by Frank Blake Webster Company. 



