440 WOOD WARBLERS 



simple peet, tweet, tweet, tweet, given on the same key throughout. . . . 

 Nearer at hand, however, the resemblance is lost, and a ringing, pene- 

 trating quality becomes apparent in the Warbler's song." (Bull. Nutt. 

 Orn. Club, III, 1878, pp. 153-162.) 



Thoroughly to appreciate the Prothonotary's radiant beauty, one 

 should float quietly in a canoe past its haunts. Its color shows to best 

 advantage against the dark background of its home, and its every 

 movement is a delight to the eye. 



638. Helinaia swainsoni (Aud.). SWAINSON'S WARBLEK. Ads. 

 Crown cinnamon-brown; a whitish line over the eye; back, rump, wings, and 

 tail olive grayish brown without white; underparts soiled yellowish white, 

 grayer on the sides. L., 5'00; W., 275; T., 1'90; B. from N., '46. 



Range. S. E. U. S. Breeds in Austroriparian fauna from se. Mo., s. Ills., 

 s. Ind., and se. Va. (Warwick Co.), s. to La. and n. Fla.; winters in Jamaica; 

 migrates through Cuba and Bahamas; casual in Nebr., Tex., and Vera Cruz. 



Nest, externally of leaves, lined with pine needles and rootlets, in bushes, 

 canes, palmettos, and clumps of vines, from three to ten feet above the 

 ground or surface of the water. Eggs, 3-4, white, with a faint bluish tinge, 

 75X'54. Date, Charleston, S. C., May 7. 



The history of Swainson's Warbler is very similar to that of Bach- 

 man's Warbler. It was discovered by Dr. Bachman near Charleston, 

 South Carolina, in 1832, and for somewhat over fifty years was prac- 

 tically a lost species, but proves now to be a common bird in some 

 parts of its range. Its rediscovery near Charleston by Mr. A. T. Wayne 

 and Mr. Brewster is recounted by the latter in an article which ade- 

 quately portrays the bird, its habits and haunts. It lives on and near 

 the ground, and, according to Mr. Brewstcr's experience, four things 

 seem indispensable to its existence " water, tangled thickets, patches 

 of cane, and a rank growth of semi-aquatic plants." Its song, which 

 is highly ventriloquial, is described by the same author as "a series of 

 clear, ringing whistles, the first four uttered rather slowly, and in the 

 same key, the remaining five or six given more rapidly, and in an 

 evenly descending scale. ... In general effect it recalls the song of 

 the Water Thrush (Seiurus noveboracensis) . It is very loud, very rich, 

 very beautiful, while it has an indescribable tender quality that thrills 

 the senses after the sound has ceased." The Auk, 1885, pp. 65-80; see also 

 Ibid., pp. 346-348, and also Perry, Orn. and OoL, 1886, p.188; 1887, p. 141. 



639. Helmitheros vermivorus (Gmd.). WORM-EATING WARBLER. 

 (Fig. 115.) Ads. A black lino from the eye to the nape, and two on the 

 crown from either nostril; an olive-buffy line over either eye, and a third 

 through tne center of the crown; back, wings, and tail olive-green without 

 white; underparts whitish cream-buff, whiter on the throat and belly. 

 L., 5-51; W., 2'78; T., 2'05; B. from N., '39. 



Range. E. N. Am. Breeds mainly in the Carolinian fauna from s. 

 Iowa, n. Ills., e. and w. Penn., and the Hudson and Conn. River valleys 

 s. to s. Mo., Tenn., Va., and mts. of S. C. (casually further south); winters 

 from Chiapas to Panama, in Cuba and the Bahamas, and casually in Fla.; 

 in migration casually to Mass., Vt., w. N. Y., s. Orit., and s. Wise. 



Washington, quite common S. R., Apl. 28-Sept. 15. Ossining, common 

 S. R., May 7-Aug. 23. Cambridge, A. V., one instance, Sept. 



