492 THE BIRDS OF MAINE 



appear in southern Maine about May seventh, and in the region 

 about Bangor the average date of arrival is about May fifteenth, 

 varying from as early as the tenth to as late as the twentieth. 

 During migration they may be found in scattered bands, (asso- 

 ciated with other Warblers and very often accompanied by 

 one or two Tennessee Warblers as well,) frequenting the edges 

 of woods and thickets. They are almost always at this season 

 to be found in alder thickets and bushes bordering roads, 

 brooks, rivers, ponds, or lakes. A smaller proportion of indi- 

 viduals may be found scattered by ones and twos through the 

 open hard wood growth and in the taller trees. 



They are quiet, unpretentious little busy bodies, silently 

 passing from twig to twig in search of food. They do not seem 

 to make any particular demonstrations of love or affection for 

 their companions, nor have I ever observed the ceremony of 

 selecting their mates, though it must be gone through with, 

 as it is in the case of our other Warblers. 



During the nesting season they frequent rather open hard 

 wood growth, or second growth thickets, placing their nests 

 on the ground at the foot of a shrub or bush, or on a hummock 

 concealed in the moss. It takes seven to nine days to build 

 the nest, and on its completion an egg is laid each day until 

 the set is completed. The eggs are usually laid between six 

 and ten in the morning. The process of incubation begins as 

 soon as the first egg is laid. Four is the most frequent number 

 laid but sets of three or five are also found. The ground color 

 of the eggs is white and they are minutely speckled and spotted 

 with dots of reddish brown, lilac and shades of intermediate 

 color. Three eggs observed at Fort Kent, July 10, 1904, 

 measured 0,66 x 0.46, 0.64 x 0.48, 0.64 x 0.49. The nest 

 was composed of fine moss, fine grass and spruce twigs, lined 

 with pine needles and fine grass, and it was situated on the 

 ground on an open wooded hillside at the foot of and between 

 two small spruce trees, and was well imbedded in the moss. 

 It measures in depth outside one and three-fourths inches, and 



