54 TWENTIETH CENTTJEY CLASSICS 



" The Catbird builds his nest as he does everything else. 

 The loose mass of coarse twigs, patched up wi$i leaves, 

 pieces of newspaper, or anything he happens to fancy, 

 looks as if it would hardly bear his weight. He lines it, 

 however, with fine bits of brown and black roots, and when 

 the beautiful dark bluish green eggs are laid in it, you 

 feel sure that such an artist-looking bird must enjoy the 

 contrasting colors." 



Eggs three to five, usually four, .94x.69 ; in form, oval. 



VI. WESTERN HOUSE WREN. 

 Troglodytes aedon aztecus (BATED.). 



Summer resident; common. Arrive in April; begin 

 laying about the middle of May. Leave in September. 



HABITAT. Western United States, except Pacific coast ; 

 east to Illinois ; south into Mexico to Vera Cruz ; breeds 

 throughout its United States range, and probably south- 

 ward. 



This variety of T. aedon was entered in my " Catalogues 

 of the Birds of Kansas " as T. aedon parkmanii, as at that 

 time its habitat was supposed to embrace the western 

 United States east to or near the Mississippi river. Since 

 then, the A. O. U. Committee, in reviewing the material 

 before them, have decided that the birds on the Pacific 

 coast differ enough iij. color, etc., to form another subspe- 

 cies, and, as the name T. parkmanii was given by Audubon 

 to a bird procured on the Columbia River,' the new form 

 properly retains the name, and our bird becomes T. aedon 

 aztecus. 



This subspecies differs from the above description, in 



