F.LACK roLI.Kl) WAKIILKK. 5,S'j 



irrouiid iiuiDiiLi- the ^ti'iMss. \\\\\ X\\v liir.lsd > not risiiiiii Idml!,- in oiu' ^^p"! ^Vii'MiliWllfiH-'^ WR A 

 thus these great avian waves are eoustaiitJv parsing uvit the hin-eiis \.\\\>iM\diiu\\\\tnV'\iiiMi<i 

 Aviiitei'. aiul generally niDre than iiill' the liirds of which the\ are ei mposed are Pine 

 Warblers. Of all the thousands of this s])eeies which s|ieiid the cohler seasiiuin VUiv')^ 

 but few remain to breed, and by the middle of .Maich the greater portion \mx'(^^)^Sm 

 North. They arrive in New England in earl_\- April. ai:d by the first of Ma v jj^^iftj^o 

 construct theii' nests, whi(di are conunoidy placed in a tbrk of the topmost lind) of a , pine 

 tree. They keep close watch of their homes anr] when any one chanees to approach them 

 will chirp loudly ; but although the eolleeter can thus aceitain wln'ii he is in the vi(nnit\- of 

 a nest, he will find that the birds have l)een careful to phu^e it in such a position tha\ it, 

 counot be seen from below; therefore it is exceedingly diffuadt to discover. 1 have frtir'-i 

 (piently searched a long time for a nest and then been obliged to abandon the attempt to 

 find it, although T was confident, by the actions of the birds, that it was nea.i'. Since the 

 above was written. I have found several nests. They have all l)e;'n placed at the e.vtrem- 

 ity ofalimbas discribed by Mr. Brewster, and most oft!iesv_' nests were l)uilt in Maw but 

 I found a nest the last week in July on my place l)uilt in a low pitch pine not fifteen feet 

 from the ground, also near the extremity of a branch. This contained three eggs which 

 were, however, eaten by some ('row Blackbirds. Another nest built near this one, was 

 jjlaced in a similar situation on a higher tree, Ijut this was abandont'd b\- the birds after 

 being completed. 



During the spring season the males have a louder song than w'len in the South ; it con- 

 sists of several short notes which commence low but increase in volume and end al)ruptlv, 

 reminding one somewhat of the song of the Chip})ing Sparrow. After leaving the nests the 

 3'oungfollow their parents, and are thus found in small companies until after the moult, 

 which takes place in August; then several fainilies will come together and the fiocks thus 

 formed will increase in size until the first of October, when the Pine Warblers de))art for 

 the South, arriving in Florida about the middle of November. 



DENDRiECA STRIATA. 

 Black-polled Warbler. 



Deiidrieca striata IJaird, Birds of North Aincrica. l.S.')S, -JSC). 



DESCRIPTION. 



Sp. Cii. Form, stout. Size, largo. Iiill, stout and somewhat cuMioal. Winjrs. fi'etand tail, moderate, 

 •the latter square but n^it emarginate, with white spot confined to the two outer pair of featliers. .Sternum, 

 stoutly built and precise!}' sinnlar in projiortion to that of the preceding sjiecies. Tongue, rather wide at 

 the base where it is flesh}', but becomes thin, horny and ipiite suddenly acuminate Tiic end is ciliated but 

 not as much as in D. pinus, the fringes not being as long or as niucli extended along tlie sides. 



Color. Aduit male in spring. Above, slaty, with an olivace>ius tinge, and streaked with black. Tup 

 of head, black. Wings, dark brown, edged with olivaceous which becomes whitish on inner secondai'ies. 

 Up])er wing coverts, black, edged all around with asliy, tijiyted with white, forming two bars, Tail dark 

 brown, with the two pan-s of outer feathers spotted terminally on the inner webs with wiiite. The spot on 

 the outer feather occupies about one-third of its length, that on the central about one-half as much as this ; 

 neither touch the vein and both arc encroached upon basally by a triangle nf the dark area. (Sec Fig- 88.). 



