— 16— 



day's collection included several males o( this beautiful species. 

 At that early date for warbler nidifieation, a pair was ob- 

 serve diligently earing for the wants of their young in a nest 

 in a large pine, far out toward the extremity of a long horizontal 

 branch: ami as late as July 3 a nest was found containing young 

 birds recently hatched. 



The finding of the first nest with eggs o( this interesting 

 warbler was an event which 1 recall with pleasure. Like many 

 good finds of the collector, it was by tin- rarest fortune that 

 this one habitation of Dendroica auduboni was taken, for 

 though the swampy area was thoroughly searched, no other 

 nest of this species rewarded our eager quest; however, another 

 nest with voting birds was found in a ditl'erent locality several 

 days later. 



On June 27, while limiting for soras in a small grassy open- 

 ing in the swamp, my attention was attracted by the peculiar 

 chirping of a pair of western evening grosbeaks flying overhead. 

 Noticing that they flew rapidly in one direction. 1 thought 

 perhaps there was a nest in their line of flight, or that their 

 objective point might be their nesting place, a desideratum 

 far too valuable to be neglected. Entering the thick growth 

 of slender willows enclosing the grassy slough. I had proceeded 

 but a few steps when I espied a small grayish mass up in a 

 crotch of one of the willow stems. "Without being certain that it 

 was a nest, T shook the stem, when a sitting bird flew downward 

 obliquely and was rapidly making away among the bases of 

 surrounding trees as T caught her by a fortunate shot. The 

 prize proved to be a female of Dendroica auduboni, and I was 

 not long in ascending to the nest and securing it, with its five 

 fresh eggs. Tt is needless to add that 1 was not rewarded so 

 happily in my quest for the nest of the grosbeaks. 



The nest under consideration was eighteen feet from the 

 ground, in a crotch of the main stem of the tree, so situated that 

 it was quite exposed to view, there being no foliage for many 

 feet above. In the gloom of the willow swamp, however, the 

 nest was scarcely distinguishable to an observer on the ground. 

 Tt appeared that the nest was rather accidental in location, for 

 generally this warbler seemed to prefer the tufts on horizontal 

 branches of the firs and pines. 



The nest shown in Plate XT1T.. is two and one-fourth inches 

 in height, and three inches in diameter. The cavity averages 

 one and seven-eighths inches in diameter, and is one and three- 

 fourths inches deep. The structure is stronglv made of dried 

 weed stems, vegetable fibres, and soft grasses, with feathers 



