276 WILSON'S WARBLER 



"In actions, call-notes and song, this is a decidedly individual 

 little bird. Like the Canada, it is both a gleaner and a darting fly- 

 catcher, but it has a more perky restlessness of manner than the Can- 

 ada. It twitches its tail up and down, not methodically and almost 

 uninterruptedly, like the Palm Warbler, but with spasmodic irregu- 

 larity. Now the tail will go sharply flip-flip-flipping for many seconds 

 together, and again it will be perfectly still for a longer time. Add to 

 this Warbler's individual manners and sufficiently peculiar notes, his 

 very rich yellow and yellow-green coloration, relieved by a round, 

 glossy, blue-black crown-spot (of erectile feathers) as the sole mark- 

 ing, and you have a bird easily identified. The females usually and 

 the young always lack the distinguishing crown-cap; but their man- 

 ners betray them." 



In Maine, MorrelP says, "Wilson's Warbler may safely be classed 

 as one of the rarest Warblers which breed regularly in the State. It 

 is nowhere common, even as a migrant, arriving during the second 

 week in May with the main army of migrating Warblers. I always see 

 it singly or in pairs, never in flocks, at this time. They are birds of 

 the bush, never going into large woods as do the Black-throated Green 

 and Blackburnian Warblers, but spend the summer in knoUy, bush- 

 grown pastures bordering young growths." 



Song. — "The singing as a rule is done from a perch, between 

 sallies into the air, but sometimes it is accomplished during one of the 

 little darting flights. It is highly changeable, in everything but tone- 

 quality. Though only just loud enough, at its best, to give the bird 

 rank among full-voiced Warblers, it has much of the ringing clarity 

 of the Canada's and Hooded's songs. The commonest form of it, a 

 rapid, bubbled warble, of two nearly equal parts, the second lower- 

 toned and sometimes diminuendo, has always reminded me of a 

 Northern Water-Thrush song. But it falls short of that utterance in 

 vivid 'suddenness.' It is also somewhat like the Nashville's songs, par- 

 ticularly the less common, softer one. It is fully as clear-toned, but 

 far less loud, and more hurriedly delivered. Sometimes the Wilson's 

 sings only half his song, — using either of the two parts, — and the 

 second part thus used is occasionally prolonged into a full-length 

 song. Another regular variation is an inversion of the common two- 

 fold utterance. Again, the complete song is sometimes uttered in a 

 very soft undertone — fairly whispered. But all these variations — all 

 I have yet heard — seem to be based on one main song. Of call-notes, 

 the bird has at least two perfectly distinct kinds, both fairly constant. 

 One is a very fine, quick lisp, and the other an unusually low-toned and 



