VIREOS. 331 



6139. Vireo solitarius ( Wils.}. BLUE-HEADED VIREO. (See Fig. 52.) 

 Ad. Top arid sides of the head bluish gray ; eye-ring and lores white ; back 

 olive-green; greater and middle wing-coverts tipped with white, forming 

 two distinct wing- bars ; outer web of inner secondaries white ; under parts 

 white ; sides washed with greenish yellow. L., 5-61 ; W., 2-96 ; T., 2-15 ; B. 

 from N., -28. 



Remarks. This species may be known by its white lores and eye-ring, and 

 bluish-gray cheeks and crown. 



Range. Eastern North America; breeds from Connecticut (and south- 

 ward along the crest of the Alleghanies} northward to New Brunswick and 

 Manitoba ; winters from Florida southward. 



Washington, common T. V., Apl. 10 to May 10 ; Sept. to Oct. 26. Sing 

 Sing, tolerably common T. V., Apl. 23 to May 14 ; Sept. 8 to Oct. 20. Cam- 

 bridge, common T. V., rather rare S. E., Apl. 25 to Oct. 5. 



Nest, pensile, of pine needles, plant down, etc., firmly interwoven, sus- 

 pended from a forked branch five to ten feet up. Eggs, three to four, white, 

 with a few specks or spots of black, umber, or rufous-brown, chiefly at the 

 larger end, -80 x -53. 



This large and handsome Vireo a bird of the woods is the first 

 of its family to reach the Northern States in the spring and the last 

 to depart in the autumn. Like its congeners, but unlike birds in gen- 

 eral, it sings at its work. In form its music resembles the Red-eye's, 

 the Philadelphia's, and the Yellow-throat's ; but to me it is more varied 

 and beautifu 1 * han any of these, though some listeners may prefer the 

 Yellow-throat for the richness and fullness of its " organ tone." The 

 Solitary's song is matchless for the tenderness of its cadence, while in 

 peculiarly happy moments the bird indulges in a continuous warble 

 that is really enchanting. It has, too, in common with the Yellow- 

 throat, a musical chatter suggestive of the Baltimore Oriole's and a 

 pretty trilled whistle. Its most winning trait is its tameness. Wood 

 bird as it is, it will sometimes permit the greatest familiarities. Two 

 birds I have seen which allowed themselves to be stroked in the freest 

 manner while sitting on the eggs, and which ate from my hand as 

 readily as any pet canary; but I have seen others that complained 

 loudly whenever I approached their tree. Perhaps they had had sad 

 experiences. BRADFORD TORREY. 



A single specimen of the PLUMBEOUS VIREO (6%9b. V. s. plumbeus), a west- 

 ern species, has been taken at Peterboro, N. V. (Miller, Auk, xi, 1894, p. 79). 



629c. V. S. alticola Breivst. MOUNTAIN SOLITARY VIREO. Similar 

 to the preceding, but with a much larger bill, and the back generally with 

 more or less slaty blue. W., 3-15; T., 2-25; B. from N., -35; depth of B. at 

 N., -20. 



Range. Higher portions of the Alleghanies in North and South Carolina; 

 southward in winter to Florida. 



