FlilX<illXIl).E — Till-; FI.SCIIKS. 



71 



He ilym elts m elan ureph alus. 



IIau. East«'rn rnitrd Sfat«-s to llu* Missouri plains; scmfh to Kciiiulor. Iloiidnras 

 (MuoKK, I*. Z. S. IS51>, 58); Xalapa (8cl. 18:)1), .'{(;:.); l{op)ta (S<l. lsr>r>, VA); Conh.va 

 (Sci.. iM.'iO, 301); (juattTiiala (Stu Il.is, I, 17); Cul»a (Cab. .1. VI, \)); E<ua(K)r (Sci.. 

 18«0, 2!)8); Costa Kica (r.vn. J. <»1, 71): (Lawk. IX, lo-j) ; Panania (Lawk. VII, 18G1, 

 'J!>7): Vera Cruz, wiuttr (8i m. M. li. S. I. .V/J) ; Yucatan (Lawk. Aini. IX. 210). 



Hauits. The lIose-LreasttHl Orosln^ak, during the .suinmcr inoiitlis, api^'ars 



to have a widely extended area of distri- 



luitioii, tiiuuj^h nowhere a very al)undant 



.sjK'eie.s, ami one ol' soniewliat irregular 



uecurrenee. It is found as far to the east 



as Nova Scotia, to the north as Selkirk 



Settlement and the valley of the Sas- 

 katchewan, and to tlie west as Nebraska. 



It winters in great numbers in (luate- 



mala. In the last-named country, while 

 abundant in the Vera Paz, it was not 



found at Diienas, but was a common 



cage-bird in the city of (Juatemala. It 



w^as also found common at llerrudura, in Colombia, South America, by Mr. 



C. W. Wvatt. 



This bird was noticed on a single occasion near San Antonio by Mr. 

 Dresser, but was not observed by Dr. Woodhouse in Texas, or in the Indian 

 Territory. Sumichrast did not meet with it in A'era Cruz. At St. Stephens, 

 N. i\, Mr. Boardman found this species a regular summer visitant, but rare, 

 nor (ud ^Ir. Verrill find it common in the w^estern part of Maine. In ^las- 

 sachusetts this bird becomes more common, but is nowhere very abun- 

 dant. It has been met with in various places in the eastern part of the 

 State, but rarely, and only in restricted localities. In the western part of the 

 State it is more numerous, as well as throughout the whole of the Connecti- 

 cut Valley. At Springfield, Mr. Allen notes it as a summer visitant, breed- 

 ing in the open woods, but not abundant. He is of the opinion that 

 during the past twenty-five years this bird has increased in numbers in all 

 parts of the State. Mr. Allen found this bird quite common in Southern 

 Indiana, in Northern Illinois, and in Western Iowa, where he found it fre- 

 quent in the groves along the streams. Dr. Cones mentions it as rare and 

 oidy migratory in South Carolina. Mr. Mcllwraith gives it as a summer 

 resident in the vicinity of Hamilton, Canada, where it is very generally dis- 

 tributed throughout the open woods, arriving there the second week in ^lay. 

 It is also found throughout Vermont, in favorable sittiations in open woods, 

 on the borders of streams. It is not uncommon in the vicinity of Kandolph, 

 where it regularly breeds. 



Wilson, who enjoyed but few opportunities of studying the habits of this 

 species, states that it eagerly feeds on the ripe fruit of the sour gum-tree. 

 He was also aware of its fine song, its value as a caged bird, and that it 

 frequently sings during the night. 



