WOOD WARBLERS 421 



668. Dendroica townsendi (Towns.). TOWNSKND WARBLER. 



Adult male in spring and summer. Head and throat black, except for 

 bright yellow superciliary and malar streak 

 bordering throat ; breast bright yellow fading 

 to white on middle of belly ; sides streaked 

 with black; back bright olive green, with 

 black arrow-point streaks ; wings and tail 

 blackish, wing with two white bars, tail with 

 inner webs of three lateral feathers white at 

 ends. Adult female in spring and summer : 

 like winter male, but black streaking of 

 upper parts and sides restricted or obsolete ; 



crown sometimes blackish ; throat often blotched with black. Adult male 

 in fall and winter : like summer male, but black obscured ; crown and hind 

 neck with olive green edges to feathers ; cheek patch with olive green tips 

 to feathers ; throat lemon yellow ; chest and sides spotted with black. 

 Adult female in fall and winter : like summer female, but upper parts 

 slightly brownish, streaks indistinct ; sides and flanks brownish. Young 

 male in first fall and winter : like adult winter male, but streaks on crown 

 and back obsolete, and yellow of throat paler. Young female in first fall 

 and winter : like adult fall female, but yellow paler, and markings less 

 distinct. Male: length (skins) 4.21-4.80, wing 2.56-2.72, tail 1.89-2.01, 

 bill .32-.3S. Female : length (skins) 4.25-4.92, wing 2.48-2.60, tail 1.93- 

 L97, bill .32-.39. 



Remarks. The wide band of black or olive on the sides of the head, 

 green back and bright yellow breast, are enough to distinguish townsendi 

 in any plumage. 



Distribution. Breeds in Transition and Boreal zones in western North 

 America, from Yukon valley to Oregon, and east to Montana ; migrates to 

 Colorado, western Texas, and south to Guatemala ; accidental in Pennsyl- 

 vania. 



Nest. Attributed to townsendi by Bendire, in willows, about 4 feet 

 from the ground, made of rotten plant fibers and roots, lined with rootlets, 

 hair, and plant down. Eggs : 3, pinkish white, spotted mainly about the 

 larger end with brown, lavender, and dark amber. 



The Townsend warbler is a difficult bird to study, as it affects the 

 tops of lofty firs and spruces, hurrying from one to the other in 

 what may well appear unseemly haste to the observer below. 



Dr. Merrill ascribes to it a mrens-like drawled dee' '-dee' '-dee '-de* dS. 



669. Dendroica occidentalis (Towns.). HERMIT WARBLER. 

 Adult male in spring and summer. Top and sides of head bright yellow, 



crown spotted with black, occiput usually mainly or wholly black ; throat 

 black ; rest of under parts white, some- 

 times streaked on sides ; hind neck streaked 

 black and olive green ; rest of upper parts 

 gray, tinged with olive green and streaked 

 with black; wings and tail black, wings 

 crossed by two white bands ; tail with two 

 outer pairs of feathers largely white. Adult 

 female in spring and summer: like winter 

 male, but forehead and crown largely yel- 

 low ; streaks on back restricted ; body less j, ; 

 brownish ; throat and chest often with 



