sn 



JvKi'oiM' oi'' Stati: (ii';oi,0(:isT. 



Neat, ill orcluirds, thickets and woods, in upright I'oi'k or on liori- 

 zoiiliil lijiib; of shreds ol' hiirl<. ^rass, plant (ilii-cs, vcgcUiblc down, 

 IValluTs, string, etc.; lined witli line down and hair, /'/////n, <}-t); pale 

 ereaniy-white; .G4 by .50. 



Rather eonniion migrant sonthward. Summer resident iu some 

 numbers i\ortluva.rd. It arrives earlier llian the species just men- 

 tioned, sometimes by April 20. It is the smallest of the Flycatchers, 

 and may readily be distinguished by its size. It is called, in many places, 

 Che-bee, from its note, which is very distinctly ""che-bcc.'' It is to 

 bo found most often in st raiiuliui;- wooils, aloni;- the (ulges. and about 

 roads through woodland, and in strips of woods along hill-tops. With 

 us, I have gt'iierally found it upon the higluM- land, where it is very 

 quiet, seldom saying anything, and I ben only uttering a sharp *'whii." 

 it industriously pursues Hying insects, and (>ven when one does ]u>t 

 see it he is nMuiiuh'd of its presence by hearing the snap of jaws as it 

 seizes its prey. 



The earliest and latt^st date of its lirst apjiearance is, at Krook- 

 ville, April 24, 188(i, May 8, 1882; Bloomington, May 3, 1892; Rich- 

 mond, May 22, 1897; Sedan, April 20, 1889, May ;|, 1885; Lake 

 (Vninty, May Ki, 1877 and 1880; Chicago, May 5, 1879, May 23, 189(5. 

 It has been reported biveding in jjake County and in Dekalb County. 

 Mr. -I. (). Snyd(M- found a nest, with I'resh eggs, near Waterloo, June 

 o, 1885. I'rof. r>. W. bivermann says it is a summer resident, not 

 common in Carroll (\)ui\ty. Its disappearance in fall occurs in late 

 .Vugust and September. It was last reported at the following places: 

 lirookville, August 31, 1883; Cincinnati, ()., August 27, 1879; Sedan, 

 Septend)er 7, 1889; Chicago, 111., September 30, 1895; Bicknell, Sep- 

 tend>er 18, 1895. lt,s small size does not prevent it from doing great 

 good. Its food is [)rincipally the smaller insects and occjisionally a 

 little fruit. 



I'rof. K. II. King says the examination of 23 showed they had eaten 

 30 beetles, 18 diptera (tlies and gnats), 2 heteroptera, 37 winged ants, 

 2 small ichneumon Hies, 3 caterpillars. 1 nu>th, I sn\all dragonflies 

 and 1 spider (Oeol. of Wis., p. 5(52). 



'Phis is the only oiu' of the little Klyeatehei's that tries to sing; at 

 least, that attempts what to my ears bears sonu' resemblance to music. 

 It has a little song, that one may occasionally hear it try to sing, that 

 is tpiite a. credit to a Flycatclier. 



