In the Woods. 173 



is much like the back, the three outer feathers being conspicuously white on 

 their terminal half. There is a white band dividing the throat and breast. 

 The throat is dark brown with traces of lighter brown mottling. The rest of 

 the lower parts are of a light yellowish brown obscurely barred with dark 

 brown. 



The mouth is very large, and along its upper edge, from below the eye to 

 the nostrils, stretches a row of long stiff hair-like bristles. The middle toe 

 has a conspicuous comb on its claw. 



The female is similar to the male, but the white areas on the tail and 

 across the lower throat are replaced by bufTy markings not so extensive as are 

 the white areas in the male. Two eggs are laid on the ground, generally 

 where there are dry dead leaves. They are dull white with lilac suffusions and 

 some distinct dots of varying shades of brown. They are about one inch and 

 an eisfhth long- and more than four fifths of an inch in their other diameter. 



The birds are found in Eastern North America as far north as New 

 Brunswick and Manitoba. They breed from the Carolinas northward and 

 winter from Florida southward. 



There is a prototype of our Whip-poor-will taking that bird's place 



during the warmer portions of the year in our more southern districts. It is 



a larcfer bird, fully twelve inches long, and h'trhter in general 



.. color. The same character of mottlmg in more tawny 



widow. _ . -11 



Antrostomus caroiinensis colors prevails, aud tlic white areas in the male are re- 



'°"'^'''' placed by buffy in the female, on tail and throat. The 



white on the tail extends to more feathers and the throat band is more 

 broken. The same bill bristles are found, but differ from those of the Whip- 

 poor-will in having branches on their basal halves. This is the Chuck-will's- 

 widow, whose song is much the same in quality as that of the Whip-poor-will, 

 but has an added syllable and is much more deliberately uttered. 



The method of nesting is similar in the two birds, as are the eggs, though 

 those of the Chuck-will's-widow are larger, being one inch and two-fifths in 

 length and about an inch in width. 



The birds are found in the South Atlantic and Gulf States, from North 

 Carolina southward, going as far north in the interior as Southern Illinois 

 and Kansas. They breed throughout their United States range and winter 

 from our southern boundary southward. 



