WOOD WARBLERS 403 



lores, eye ring-, and under parts white, tinged with brownish on sides and 

 buffy on chest. Adult female in spring and summer : like summer male, 

 but chestnut of crown and upper tail coverts lighter, crown patch re- 

 stricted, sometimes obsolete. Adult male in fall and winter : upper parts 

 tinged with brown ; crown patch concealed by gray tips to feathers ; 

 under parts brownish buff, becoming whitish on belly. Young in first 

 plumage : like adults, but without crown patch ; upper tail coverts buffy 

 brown instead of chestnut; wings with two bars; under parts white. 

 Male: length (skins) 3.60-4.05, wing 2.17-2.29, tail 1.62-1.73, bill .33-.3S. 

 Female: length (skins) 3.62-3.75, wing 2.03-2.08, tail 1.47-1.57, bill .30- 

 .35. 



Distribution. Breeds in Lower Sonoran zone from the Santa Clara 

 Valley, Utah, south through Arizona and Sonora to Jalisco, Mexico. 



Nest. Usually in deserted woodpecker holes, behind bark of trees, in 

 giant cactus, or by roots along river banks, 2 to 20 feet from the ground, 

 made of fine straws, leaves, horsehair, and feathers. Eggs : 3 to 5, white 

 or creamy, finely speckled, usually in dense ring around larger end, with 

 reddish brown. 



Mr. O. W. Howard found the Lucy warblers fairly common along 

 the river-bottoms throughout southern Arizona, especially in the 

 willow and mesquite thickets, and Mr. Scott found' them breeding 

 at the base of the Santa Catalina Mountains up to 4000 feet. 



Among the nests found by Mr. Howard some were in deserted 

 verdin and woodpecker nests. He says that many are destroyed by 

 wood rats and snakes. 



644. Helminthophila virginise (Baird). VIRGINIA WARBLER. 



Adult male in spring and summer. Upper parts gray, rump and upper 

 tail coverts bright yellowish green ; crown with chestnut patch concealed by 

 gray tips in fresh plumage ; orbital ring white, conspicuous ; under parts 

 dull white with chest and usually throat yellow. Adult female in spring and 

 summer : Like adult male, but duller, especially on rump and upper tail 

 coverts ; crown patch restricted, sometimes almost obsolete ; back browner. 

 Adult male in fall and winter : like summer male, but yellow duller, crown 

 patch concealed by grayish tips to feathers; upper parts and flanks 

 strongly tinged with brown. Young in first plumage : two wing bars dull 

 buffy ; under parts brownish gray ; median parts of breast and belly 

 white. Male : length (skins) 4.08-4.30, wing 2.40-2.42, bill .35-.39. Fe- 

 male: length (skins) 4, wing 2.26-2.38, tail 1.79-1.84, bill .37. 



Distribution. Rocky Mountain region of the United States from Wy- 

 oming to Nevada and south to Guanajuato and Jalisco. 



Nest. On the ground under a bush or tuft of grass ; made of straws, 

 rootlets, and fibers, loosely put together. Eggs : often 4, creamy white, 

 finely and rather densely speckled over whole surface or around larger end 

 with chestnut and purplish gray. 



Mr. Ridgway found the Virginia warbler common in the Hum- 

 boldt and Wasatch Mountains, and Mr. O. W. Howard states that it 

 is quite common in the pine regions of Arizona above 5000 feet. In 

 Colorado Mr. Aiken rarely finds it above 7500 feet, and he thinks that 

 it prefers the foothills. 



Unlike other warblers found in Arizona, Mr. Howard says, during 



