186 THE BLACK-THROATED GRAY WARBLER. 
According to Mr. Bowles, Audubon Warblers evince a great fondness for 
their chosen nesting haunts, and will return to them year after year, often to 
the same tree, and sometimes to the same branch. ‘They are the most solicit- 
ous of all the Washington Warblers concerning their eggs, sometimes coming 
to meet the intruder as he climbs toward the nest. At such times the alarm note 
of the female soon brings the male, when, should the nest contain incubated 
eggs or young, both birds crawl among the branches, frequently within reach, 
with wings and tail spread, in absolute forgetfulness of their own safety.” 
Incubation is accomplished in twelve days; and one or two broods are 
raised, according to locality and length of season. 
We lose sight of most of the ves especially the Seater ones, after the 
heyday of springtime, but here is one who, because he has forsworn wander- 
ing, is making delicate overtures of confidence toward mankind. ‘This year, 
especially, now that the dense tract of woods north of the University has been 
cut out, they linger about our neighborhood with the matter-of-factness of 
Bluebirds. The young ones play about the eaves or make sallies at passing 
flies from the window-sills, and yawn with childish insouciance if mamma 
suggests, by a sharp tchip, that enemies may lurk behind the curtains. They 
know it’s only habit with her, and she doesn’t believe it herself. The adult 
attire is duller now, and only the yellow rump-patch remains for recognition 
by a friend. The year is waning, no doubt of that, but October sunshine is 
good enough for us—or November rains. Let them flit who will! Wash- 
ington is good enough for us, you in your fir house and I in mine. 
No. 76. 
BLACK-THROATED GRAY WARBLER. 
A. O. U. No. 665. Dendroica nigrescens (‘Towns.). 
Description.—Adult male in spring and summer: A supraloral spot of yel- 
low; remaining plumage black, white and blue-gray ; head, throat and chest black 
interrupted by superciliary stripes and broad malar stripes of white; remaining 
upperparts blue-gray, marked with black in inverted wedge-shaped spots on 
back, scapulars and upper tail-coverts; wings and tail black edged with bluish 
ash, the middle and greater coverts tipped with white, forming two conspicuous 
wing-bars, the four outer rectrices blotched with white on inner webs in sharply 
decreasing area, the outermost chiefly white, the fourth merely touched; sides 
white streaked with black or striped black-and-white ; remaining underparts white. 
Adult female: Like male but duller, the black of crown partly veiled by blue- 
gray skirting, that of throat reduced by white tips of feathers. Young birds 
resemble the female but the black of crown and throat is almost entirely hidden 
by blue-gray and white respectively, and the area of the tail blotches is much 
reduced. Length about 5.00 (127); wing 2.44 (62); tail 1.97 (50); bill .36 
(9.2); tarsus .69 (17.5). 
