BIRDS OF NEW YORK 461 



yellow. Female: Like the male, but the colors less bright and the black 

 cap more or less veiled. Fall specimens: The crown tipped with olive 

 in the male, the young females lacking the black cap. 



Length 5 inches; extent 6.97; wing 2.21; tail 2; bill .32. 



Distribution. Breeds from central Mackenzie, central Keewatin and 

 central Ungava and central Newfoundland south to southern Saskatchewan, 

 northern Minnesota, central Ontario, New Hampshire, Maine and Nova 

 Scotia. Winters from Guatemala to Costa Rica. Migrates mainly along 

 the Alleghanies. In New York this warbler is only a transient, the most 

 careful search for it in the Adirondacks having, as yet, been fruitless, 

 although it is recorded from northern New Hampshire and Maine as a sum- 

 mer resident. The spring migration begins near the coast from the gth 

 to the 1 7th of May, the I2th being the average date. In western New York 

 it is occasionally noted as early as the 3d of May, but the nth seems to 

 be the average date of arrival. The last birds pass northward between 

 the 22d and 3ist of May, a few dates in southeastern New York running 

 as late as June 13. In the fall, migrants come from the north between the 

 loth and the 27th of August, sometimes not before the 9th of September, 

 and the last depart for the south from the 1st to the 6th of October. The 

 species is rather erratic in abundance, some years scarcely being noticed 

 at all, other seasons appearing in large numbers, but in general, it is called 

 an uncommon species in the southeastern portion of the State and in many 

 stations of central New York it is regarded one of the rarer warblers; but 

 in all localities near the southern shore of Lake Ontario as well as the 

 region about the central lakes, the Wilson warbler is quite regular in 

 occurrence, but the abundance varies as has been noted by many observers. 

 The late David Bruce of Brockport called my attention to the fact that 

 during the years while he was collecting in Monroe county he was unable 

 to secure specimens of the Black cap for several seasons; then perhaps 

 in one day he would notice hundreds of the species and be able to secure 

 all the specimens he needed for years to come. Personally, I have suc- 

 ceeded in recording the species every spring, while observing in Monroe, 

 Erie and Ontario counties, but, on the average, it is considerably less 



