SYLVICOLID.E — THE WARBLERS. 3II 



other times they are very shy. Tlie notes and sounds uttered l)y tlie West- 

 ern bird Dr. Cooper states to bu the same as those of the Eastern species, 

 and with the samo grotL\si|ueness. They leave the State of California on or 

 before the tirst of September. 



Dr. Gambel states that tlie Chat apjiears in California about the middle of 

 April, resorting to the hed,i;es, vineyards, and bushy portions of gardens to 

 ])reed. 



Mr. Xantus found a nest of this bird (S. I., 89G) at Fort Tejon, California, 

 in ^lay. It is a very symmetrical and exactly circular nest, six inches wide 

 and three in height. The cavity has a diameter of three inches at the brim, 

 and a depth of two. It is built of soft strips of bark, large stems, and 

 branches of dry plants, leaves, twigs, and other vegetable substances. These 

 are very neatly and compactly interwoven. The nest is elaborately lined with 

 finer stems and flexilde grasses. Another nest (S. I., 181G), obtained at Xeo- 

 sho Falls, Kansas, by Mr. B. F. Goss, is of irregular shape. Its height is four 

 inches, and its diameter varies from three and three quarters to five inches. 

 It was built in a depression in the ground, and its shai)e adapted to its loca- 

 tion. The base is composed entirely of leaves, impacted when in a moist and 

 decaying condition. Within these is interwoven a strong basket-like struc- 

 ture, made of long and slender stems, strips of bark, and fine rootlets, lined 

 with finer grasses and stems of plants. 



A nest of this S[)ecies from Sacramento is composed, externally, of fine 

 strips of inner bark of the grape and of deciduous trees, coarse straws, stems 

 of plants, twigs, and dried remains of weeds, etc. It is lined with finer 

 stems and long wiry roots, resembling hair. This nest has a diameter of four 

 inches and a height of three. The cavity has a diameter of three inches at 

 the rim, and a depth of two. 



In regard to this variety ftlr. Ridg way* writes : ^ In no respect that I could 

 discover does this Western bird differ from the Eastern in habits, manners, 

 or notes. The nesting-habits are exactly the same." 



The eggs of this species are, for the most part, larger than are those of the 

 vircns. They vary in length from .95 to l.OO of an inch, and have an aver- 

 age breadth of .70 of an inch. Their markings do not differ essentially in 

 shadings from those of the common species. 



Subfamily SETOPHAGIN-ffi. 



Gen. Char. Syh-iooline l»ird.s with the characters of- Flycatchers ; the bill notched at 

 tip, depressed and broad at the base, thouizli quite <Ieep ; the rictus with well-developed 

 bristles reacliincr beyond the nostrils, sometimes to the end of the bill. First quill rather 

 less than the fourth, or still shorter. Size of the species rarely exceeding six inches. 

 Colors red, yellow, and olive. 



The species of this section resemble the small Flycatchers of the family 



