I^AMILY Sylviidae.— Sylvias. 



27. POLIOPTILA C/ERULEA. 



BLUE-GRAY GNATCATCHER. 



As a work of beauty and ingenious architeciural design, the nest 

 of this bird must stand at the head of all others in this country. 

 If not. it certainly has few equals. It is rather a frail structure, 

 usually built in the small forks of a tree at heights ranging from 

 ten to fifty feet. The nest is composed of soft and downy materi- 

 als, fine dry grasses, stems of old leaves, the soft, cotton-like sub- 

 stance of withered blossoms, and the silky down of the milkweed 

 are chiefly the materials used. The entire outside is covered with 

 a beautiful gray lichen. It is lined with fine grasses and horse 

 hair, with an occasional feather from the breast of the bird. The 

 nest measures about three inches in diameter at the base, two at 

 the top, and three in height. In proportion to the size of the nest, 

 the cavity is comparatively deep, measuring one and a half inches, 

 and ranging from one to one and a half inches at the rim. The 

 nest is so beautifully and artistically made that it can be easily 

 recognized at sight. In Ohio where this bird breeds abundantly, 

 I have observed that they prefer the elm and willow to all other 

 trees. 



The eggs, usually five in number, measure .55 by .45. They are 

 of a short oval shape, their ground-color is a greenish-white and 

 dotted with small blotches and spots of a reddish-brown, lilac and 

 slate. 



28. POLIOPTILA PLUMBEA. 



PLUMBEOUS GNATGATCHER. * 



29, POLIOPTILA CALIFORNICA, 



BLACK-TAILED GNATCATCHER. * 



30. REGULUS CALENDULA. 



RUBY-CROWNED KINGLET. 



"The Kinglets offer a remarkable illustration of the fact that a 

 bird may be very common, and yet its eggs remain for years among 

 the greatest desiderata of oologists. So far as I am aware, but four 



