134 



AMERICAN ORNITHOLOGY 



K^T^ 



green hue these spirited creatures come to add their gleams of sunshine 

 to the beautiful mantle that is unfolding over the country. 



Almost without exception every garden or orchard will be selected 

 for the home of one or two pairs of Yellow Warblers or Summer Yel- 

 lowbirds as perhaps they are fully as well known. Golden Warbler is 

 another name often aptly applied to these sprightly and talkative little 

 warblers. They are architects of no mean ability, and their handiwork 

 cannot be duplicated by human hands. I think that the most artistic 

 nest of this species that I ever met with was one built ^by a pair of the 



birds near Warren, R. I. 

 It was in the neighbor- 

 hood of a large cotton 

 factory and was com- 

 posed entirely of cotton 

 and lined with horse- 

 hair. This was situated 

 in an exposed position 

 in a small birch and 

 must have attracted the 

 attention of any one who 

 chanced to go near there. 

 My observations have 

 been that the Cowbird 

 imposes upon the Yel- 

 low Warbler more often 

 than upon any other 

 bird in the matter of 

 forcing them to hatch 

 their eggs and rear their 

 young. As the nest is 

 small and the contra- 

 band egg of consider- 

 able size comparatively, 

 the rightful owner of the 

 nest cannot lay more 

 than three eggs at the 

 most. The chances are 

 that even if these are 

 not broken before hatch- 

 ing by the clumsy young 

 cowbird, the young are 



Photo by J. B. Pardoe. "^ 



NEST OF THE YELLOW WARBLER. apt to be smothered bjr 



