BIRDS OF NEW YORK 4O5 



the syllables " hi-hi-hi-hi-hi-hi-hi " ending in a high-pitched long drawn 

 "whee-ee"; another he writes " bzzz-bzzz-bzzz-bzzz-bzzz," a " weak, insectlike 

 grating." In all these variations Mr Thayer recognizes a " characteristic, 

 full-voiced huskiness " which distinguishes the species. John Burroughs's 

 description of the first known nest of this species, discovered in Delaware 

 county, is found in his " Locusts and Wild Honey." The eggs are usually 

 of a buffy white or light greenish ground color, blotched and spotted with 

 reddish brown and lilac, often forming a wreath near the larger end, but 

 sometimes evenly distributed over the entire egg. They average .67 by 

 .51 inches in size. Mr Clarence F. Stone describes the nests found near 

 Branchport by himself and Mr Burtch, as follows: The nest is usually 

 placed near the ground in a low sapling amidst a fairly dense growth of 

 underbrush, especially in woods of beech and maple with a slight admix- 

 ture of pine or hemlock. 



Some years this warbler is a common summer resident, other years 

 very uncommon. Its abundance seems to depend upon whether there are 

 clearings in woods that offer the kind of nesting situations suited to its 

 tastes. In this locality the Black-throated blue warblers prefer clearings 

 amidst hemlock woods or along hemlock-clad gully banks where there 

 are dense underbrush, bushes and stump sprouts bearing multitudes of 

 large leaves. 



The male is not so nervously active or demonstrative at any time as 

 many other warblers. The female is extremely shy when flushed from the 

 nest, so that it requires some time to get a good look at her. This warbler's 

 nest often contains an egg of the Cowbird. 



The nests are variously attached to slender scrubby bushes, 8 to 30 

 inches up, usually very close to trails or old wood roads. They are very 

 neat, compact, thick walled, and made outside of shreds of weed bark, 

 bleached blades of grass, beech buds, with lining of fine brown colored 

 rootlet fibers and horse hair. A constant characteristic of this warbler's 

 nest is the decoration of decayed, spongy pieces of light colored wood 

 fastened to outside by strands of spider's web. 



