VOL. xni 



^-gifo'"] PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL MUSEUM. 615 



the branches over my head, and evidently kept an eye on me, but to a 

 careless glance they might appear to be merely climbing about in search 

 of their prey. 



It is difficult to describe the song of this species so that it will be 

 recognized; but once heard it will be remembered, for no other bird 

 keeps up such an incessant utterance of disconnected bars. During 

 the whole of his serenade the Eed-eye will sit motionless and fear 

 lessly among the leaves within a few feet of one's head, and so often 

 have my most earnest efforts to sight the voluable songster been 

 frustrated under these circumstances that I begin to understand how 

 the fable of the singing leaves may have originated. 



220. Vireo philadelphicus. Philadelphia Vireo. 



Summer resident of thickets. Summer resident; it undoubtedly 

 breeds about Pembina (Coues). Winnipeg: Summer resident toler- 

 ably common (Hine). Shoal Lake; May 20, 1887 (Christy). West 

 Slope of Duck Mountain breeding, nest found (Thompson). 



On June 9, 1884, near Fort Pelly, on the ui)per Assiniboine I found 

 a Vireo nesting in a small bluff of poplar and willow. The chosen 

 site was in the twigs of a willow some 10 feet from the ground ; the 

 nest was the usual suspended cup formed of fine grass and strips of 

 birch bark. On the ground immediately below it was another nest of 

 ])recisely the same make and materials : intending to take this with me 

 on my return I hung it in the tree, but when I came back I found it on 

 the ground, it was again hung as before, and again thrown down, 

 although it had been firmly attached to a twig. This happened several 

 times so that there was little doubt that it was the Yireo's doing, but 

 why? I can not imagine. 



On June 13, the Vireo began to sit on her four eggs. I shot her and 

 found her to correspond exactly with Cones' description of jtMladelpM- 

 CHS, except that the yellow on the breast was quite bright. The eggs 

 closely resembled those of the Red-eyed Vireo, but were destroyed by 

 an unfortunate accident before they were accurately measured. In its 

 habits the bird exhibited the strange mixture of shyness and fearless- 

 ness, common to the family ; she would continue on her nest while I 

 watched her at a little distance, and when alarmed would quietly hop 

 on a twig and then disai)pear in the foliage without uttering a com- 

 plaint. 



221. Vireo gilviis. Warbling Vireo. 



Summer resident of woodlands ; in abundance at Pembina (Coues). 

 Winnipeg: Summer resident; tolerably common (Hine). Selkirk 

 Settlements (Brower). Portage la Prairie: Commou summer resident 

 (ISTash). Carberry: Common summer resident; south slope of Riding 

 Mountain, west side of Duck Mountain (Thompson). 



