36 Lawrexce on Bachman's Warbler. [January 



retains until he can submit them to me for identification. This 

 time, among others, were two species of especial interest. The 

 most important one, which Mr. Galbraith kindly presented to 

 me, proves to be an example of the rare Bachman's Warbler, 

 which for many years has been most assiduously and vainly 

 searched for. 



No specimen of it has been obtained in the United States since 

 the types discovered by Dr. Bachman in 1833. near Charleston, 

 S. C, and described by Mr. Audubon. These are now in the 

 National Museum at Washington. A search in the proper locality 

 would probably result in finding more of this rare species, as 

 was the case in Mr. Brewster's persistent pursuit of Swainson's 

 Warbler. 



The specimen differs from Audubon's plate and description of 

 the male (octavo edition) in having the face light yellow, and 

 the under plumage pale yellow, with a greenish shade, instead 

 of deep gamboge yellow, as in the plate ; the black patch on the 

 neck in front and upper part of the breast is just as represented 

 in the plate ; the crown, occiput, and hind-neck are bluish ash, 

 with a black band on the anterior part of the crown, about one- 

 quarter of an inch in width ; in Audubon's plate of the male, 

 the entire crown is black. In the colors of all the other parts of 

 its plumage, and in its measurements, it agrees with the descrip- 

 tion given by Mr. Audubon. 



Mr. Audubon describes the female as "considerably smaller 

 than the male, and differs only in having the tints fainter, the 

 forehead yellowish-green, and the fore-neck dusky." 



In the plate the coloring of the under plumage of the female 

 is of nearly as bright a yellow as in the male. 



As the coloring of this specimen was somewhat different from 

 Mr. Audubon's plate, I wrote to Mr. Ridgway, pointing out 

 wherein they differed, and requesting him to let me know 

 whether the male (type) was accurately represented in the plate. 

 He replied as follows: "Your announcement of a specimen of 

 Bachman's Warbler from Louisiana is a great surprise to me, as 

 it doubtless will be to ornithologists in general. Your bird cor- 

 responds in every particular with the male described and figured 

 by Audubon, which is in our collection. The top of the head 

 is dull ash gray, bordered anteriorly by a black band next to the 

 yellow of the forehead, and the yellow of the face and under- 



