BLUE-WINGED WARBLER 



71 



of woods or second growths or partly grown clearings, but I have 

 found nests in the heart of heavy forests and also well out in the 

 fields near hedge-rows. 



"Never far from a grove, thicket or woods; sometimes nesting 

 on, but usually just above, the ground in a clump of grass, golden- 

 rod, or wild aster, raspberry or blackberry sprouts, or at the foot of 

 a small sapling or wild rose-bush. The nest is always surrounded 

 by grass, weeds, briars, wild grapevine, etc. One nest was placed 

 within a foot of the wheel track of a much frequented public road. 

 The bird to the best of my knowledge, does not use the same site 

 or even within a few feet of it the second time; but apparently the 

 same individuals return to the same tract regularly and nest in some 

 part of it." (Burns, MS.) 



Nest. — "Outwardly composed of the broad blades of a coarse 

 grass, the dead leaves of the maple, beech, chestnut, cherry and oak 

 trees ; the leaf points curving upward and inward forming a deep 

 cup-like nest in which the bird's head and tail seem almost to meet 

 over her back. Occasionally grass stems coarse strips of wild grape- 

 vine bark, shreds of corn fodder, and fragments of beech and wild 

 cherry bark appear in the make-up. Lined most frequently with 

 wild grapevine bark laid across, instead of bent around in a circle, 

 shredded finest on top, to which is added an occasional long black 

 horse-hair or split grass stem, with now and then a final lining of 

 split grass stems in place of fine bark. The shape varies in accord- 

 ance to situation, outwardly a short cornucopia, a round basket, and 

 once a wall-pocket affair, would best describe the shapes I have 

 noticed." {Burns, MS.) 



Eggs. — 4 or 5, nearly always 5. Ground color white to slightly 

 creamy; the variations in markings range from entirely unmarked to 

 as heavily marked as some eggs of the Northern Yellow-throat, but 

 in all cases the markings are most delicate specks and spots of burnt 

 umber, seal brown, chestnut, lavender, and rich purplish shades, 

 mostly at the larger end, but in some examples, sparingly distributed 

 over the entire egg. Shape, rounded oval; one of the daintiest eggs 

 of all our Warblers. Size; average, .64X.51 ; extremes, .68X.53, 

 .59X.46. (Figs. 12-14.) 



Nesting Dates.— West Chester, Pa., May 27-June 10 (Jackson) ; 

 New York City, May 23-June 19 (F. M. C.) ; New Haven, Conn., 

 May 20- June 16 (Bishop) ; Oberlin, O., May lo-June 10 (Jones) ; 

 De Kalb County, Ind., May 26 (Gault). 



