In Marsh and Swamp. 301 



The nesting is much Hke that of the Red-eyed Vireo, and the eggs are 

 hardly to be distinguished from those of that bird. They are three quarters 

 of an incli long and more than half an inch broad. 



These birds are found in Eastern North America north to New Hamp- 

 shire and Minnesota and west to the Rocky Mountains. They breed from 

 Northern Florida and the Gulf States northward, and winter from Florida 

 to Guatemala and Honduras. 



The Key West Vireo is the geographical race and closely related ally of 



the White-eyed Vireo, found in South Florida. Here these birds are resi- 



v^,r TXT-^o^ Tr;^«»« dent and do not migrate. 

 Key Nwest Vireo. , . '' . 



Vireo noveboracensis may- They are esseutially like the White-eyed Vireos in their 

 nardi Brewst. hablts and general economy. A little shorter than the 



White-eyed Vireo, they are genera.\\}\^rajtrr or paler in color and less yellow 

 below. The bill is larger and the birds generally are more robust. The 

 color of the eyes is pearl gray in adults and brown in immature birds. 



The Swamp Sparrow is a bird nearly six inches long, whose prevailing 



colors are deep brown above and pale gray below. During the warmer portions 



e o of the year the bird has a deep chestnut crown. The 



Swamp Sparrow. ■' ^ 



Meiospi^a georgiana forehcad is dusky or black. There is a grayish stripe 

 (Lath.). above the eye and a black or dusky line behind it. The 



back of the neck is ashy gray, with sometimes a few dusky stripes. The 

 reddish brown back is relieved by broad dusky or blackish streaks, each 

 feather being bordered with pale buff, often ashy in tone. The throat is 

 white, and the breast is grayish, shading into grayish brown on the sides and 

 flanks and into white on the belly. In winter the birds are similar, but the 

 crown is streaked with black and grayish on its chestnut ground. 



The birds nest on the ground much like the Song Sparrow, and the eggs 

 are very similar to those of that bird, but generally more heavily marked and 

 washed. They are about three quarters of an inch long and rather less than 

 three fifths of an inch broad. 



The birds are seldom found away from thickets in marshes or damp 

 meadows, and where the marshes are covered with " cat-tails " and other tall 

 grasses and reeds they abound. 



These birds are distributed over Eastern North America west to the 



