384 NESTS AND EGGS OF 



the larger end with reddish-brown, dark umber and black ; in some, 

 occasional lines or scrawls appear. Two sets of four eggs each 

 measure, respectivel)^ .71X.53, .71 x .50, .69 x .50, .69X.51; .67x48, 

 .69X.50, .66X.48, .68X.49; the average is .69 x. 52. 



^Sla. Geothlypis trichas occidentalis Brewst. [122,/^!^/.] 



Western Yello-w-throat. 



Hab. United States west of the Mississippi Valley. In winter, the more southern portion of the 

 United States, chiefly west of the Mississippi, and south through Western and Central Mexico. 



The same general habits which are common to the Eastern Yellow- 

 throat are also characteristic of this sub-species in the West. Dr. 

 Merrill states that its favorite haunt, and one in which it is very com- 

 mon in the region of Fort Klamath, Oregon, is among the tules in 

 company with Marsh Wrens and Yellow-headed Blackbirds. 



The eggs average a trifle smaller than those of G. trichas ; and are 

 less heavily marked ; .67 x .50. 



683. Icteria virens (Linn.) [123.] 



ITellow-ltireasted Chat- 



Hab. Eastern United States to the Great Plains, north to Ontario and Southern New England; south 

 in winter through Eastern Mexico to Northern Central America. 



The Yellow-breasted Chat may be found breeding in all suitable 

 places throughout its range. It inhabits the thickets and brambles of 

 low undergrowth, preferedly in the vicinity of a marsh, and the bird is 

 oftener heard than seen. In the mating season it is the noisiest bird 

 in the woods, at which time it may be observed in its wonderful aerial 

 evolutions, uttering its medley of sputtering, cackling, whispering and 

 scolding notes, interluded with loud whistles. 



The nest is built in brier thickets from two to five feet above the 

 ground, and is composed of v/ithered leaves, dry grasses, strips of bark 

 and lined with finer grasses. Large colonies of these birds are often 

 found nesting in a single locality. A strange nesting place of a pair 

 of Chats is recorded by Mr. Charles F. Batchelder as observed by Mr. 

 C. W. Beckham in Howard county, Maryland, where a pair built in a 

 Wren box attached to one of the pillars of a piazza which partially 

 fronts a small ravine. The birds seemed little disturbed by the occa- 

 sional visits of members of the family. 



The eggs of the Chat are three or four in number, usually four. 

 They are white with a glossy surface ; some specimens have a pinkish 

 tinge, others greenish. The markings are light reddish, cinnamon- 

 rufous or chestnut, in the shape of specks and spots, which are heavier 

 and bolder at the larger ends ; again specimens are found with the 

 markings evenly distributed over the entire surface or in a well defined 

 wreath around the larger end, with the rest of the ^'g'g unmarked. 



