1S92.] LoOMis on Birds of C/icstrr County, South Carolina. 'IC 



Orchard Oriole and Summer Tanager take their departure. The 

 gathering of clans of Red-winged Blackbirds and their subsequent 

 disappearance form one of the closing features of the month. 

 Birds similar to the breeding ones, also, begin to appear from lo- 

 calities above as the month progresses. The Black-and-white 

 Warbler, Parula Waibler, and Blue-gray Gnatcatcher are exam- 

 ples. The first song period draws rapidly to a close with July. 

 In the study of the beginnings of the southward migration, the 

 waning of the song season tends to convey an erroneous idea of 

 rarity in many birds, owing to their diminished prominence, 

 while on the other hand the formation of gatherings and the gen- 

 eral distribution incline to create an impression of increased 

 abundance. The inroads of birds of like kind to those that breed 

 are also to be taken into account — migrants not being mistaken 

 for denizens. 



August, from the outset, is a month of extensive movements in 

 this region. The waves of migration, and they are sharply 

 defined, bring many species that have grown scarce, or varied 

 in abundance, since their season of breeding was over. Some 

 reappear in limited numbers, never reaching their previous prom- 

 inence, as the Orchard Oriole, Summer Tanager, Prairie War- 

 bler, etc. Others become more plentiful than they were before, 

 as the Chuck-will's-widow, Whippoorwill, Loggerhead Shrike, 

 Yellow-throated Vireo, Parula Warbler, Caiolina Chickadee, 

 Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, etc. In all intervals of paucity are con- 

 spicuous. In certain birds, as the Yellow-throated Warbler, 

 there is a period of absence, more or less marked, between the 

 going of the breeders and the coming of the migrants. The Oven- 

 bird, Cerulean W^arbler, Blackburnian Warbler, Chestnut-sided 

 Warbler, Golden-winged Warbler, and Bobolink arrive — the 

 first three in the early part of the month. All occur intermit- 

 tently and, with the exception of the Ovenbird, Chestnut-sided 

 Warbler, and Bobolink, very sparingly. Wilson's Thrush has 

 been taken in two instances during the last week of this month. 

 Of July birds, the American Redstart and W^orm-eating Warbler 

 are at times foirly numerous, the former especially. From 

 the study of the after movements it seems safe to say that the 

 August migrants are from territory not far distant. Reproduc- 

 tion here practically ceases with August. It is onlj' the few tardy 

 species and second breeders that protract it even to this length. 



