THE BIRDS OF yE\Y JERSEY. :i89 



683 Icteria virens (LinnEeus). 



Yellow-breasted Chat. 



PLATK 7-i. 



Adults. — Length, G.75-7.50. Wing, 3. Above, uniform grayish olive-green : 

 below, from the ohin to the upper part of the abdomen, brilliant yellow ; rest 

 of under surface, white ; a white line over tlie eye and another from the base 

 of the bill, with a black spot between them in front of the eye. 



Young in first summer. — Above, olive-brown ; wings and tail tinged with 

 green ; below, ashy-gray. 



Nest of leaves, strips of bark and grass in a busli about three feet from the 

 ground; eggs, three to five, white, spotted with reddish-brown, .90 x .70. 



Common sinnmer resident thronghout the southern, middle and 

 northeastern parts of the State, excepting the pine barrens. Arrives 

 April 29th (May 5th), departs September 15th. 



The Chat is a bird of low thickets or clearings and is far more 

 frequently heard than seen. At any time of day we may hear his 

 queer jumble of notes pouring out of some brier thicket, a deliberate 

 '"'kuk, kuk, kuk, kuk, kuk," in a. high key and then on a much lower 

 note and still more deliberate "caw, caw, caw," then several whistles 

 and a high-pitched, rapid "kek, kek, kek, kek," a pause, and we ap- 

 proach to get a view of the performer, when we hear from another 

 bunch of briers, farther on, a harsh derisive "tsheet, tsheet, tsheet, 

 tsheet/' in a guttural tone, if such a thing is possible in a l)ird. So 

 the performance goes, apparently without any regularity or system. 

 The action of the Chat is quite as peculiar as his song; he manages to 

 conceal himself effectually and frequently to fly from one thicket 

 to another without being seen, but on other occasions he mounts 

 into the air and descends slowly with legs extended and wings flap- 

 ping, all the while pouring out his varied notes in a most ludicrous 

 flight song. One would hardly take the Chat for a Warbler, though 

 it would be equally diflicult to classify him elsewhere, and we are, 

 therefore, willing to accept the evidence of less conspicuous struc- 

 tural oharactcTs and include him as an aberrant member of this large 

 family. 



The Cliat l)reeds north to the Xew York line and farther along the 

 Hudson, also at Summit (Hann and Holmes), IMorristown (Thur- 

 ber). Lake Hopatcong (I)wight), and AYallkill Yalley, Greenwood 

 and Beaver I^akes, Passaic county (Ehoads) ; also up the Delaware 

 to High Knob and Port .Tervis (Chapman). 



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