38 



ORNITHOLOGIST 



[Vol. 10-No. 3 



A Catalogue of the Birds of Kalama- 

 zoo County, Michigan. 



BY 1)1!. MdliUIS GIBBS. — l'.\KT II. 



->4. [71. J .l»M«.v hKhiicitinuK (Gm.) Liclit. 

 AiiR'rican Titlark. — Transient. Arrive from the 

 Soiitli in April, and are found in May. Reach us 

 from the North in September and are occasionally 

 seen as late as November. Usually seen in large 

 flocks. Never observed in Summer. 



2o. [74.] MiiMilta mrui (Linn.) Vieill. Black- 

 ;ind-white Creeper. — Arrives from April 23 to 

 May 10. Principally transient, but a few remain 

 during Summer. One nest found by Dennis 

 Nolan contained three young and an addled egg. 

 It was built 1)3' the side of a decayed log on the 

 ground, and was composed in its body of grape- 

 vine bark and dried maple leaves, and was lined 

 with roots, hair and fine grapevine bark stri|)s. 

 The nest was found during the last week in May, 

 in a high beech and maple woods. 



The song of this bird, if we may call the notes 

 a song, is Clie-irheepii, teepy. seepn, ka irheepi/. 

 cheepji. The call notes are Chat ter r r r r r r r 

 r i\ or Txet, set, sit t t t t t, very rajiidly uttered. 

 Sometimes we hear a simple tweet, tweek or 

 p e e e t uttered in a lower key than the usual call. 



20. [79.] Uiimiitthophiuin piaus (Linn.) Baird. 

 Blue-winged Yellow Warbler.— A rare species 

 with us. Mr. Arthur Chambers secured a speci- 

 men May .^, 1879. The Blue-wing may summer 

 with us, but the fact has not as yet been proven. 



27. [81.] Jldmiiitliophiiija chrymptera (Linn.) 

 Baird. Blue Golden-winged Warbler. — A com- 

 mon species, arriving from April ^J(i to Jlay 11. 

 Breeds abundantly, but the nests are rarely foiuid. 

 But few nests have been met with in this county. 

 The nests are always, so far as mj' knowledge 

 goes, placed on the ground, and at the edges of 

 woods or in a new or partial clearing. The nests 

 are bulky affairs and compare well with those of 

 the Yellow-throat. The eggs, usually five in 

 number, are small, white, and spotted with fine 

 dots of reddish-brown, chiefly at the larger end. 



This is one of our handsomest Warblers and is 

 known to nearly all collectors. The females are 

 rarely shot, owing to their retiring nature. The 

 Golden-wing is rarely seen later than August 25. 

 They may remain sometime later but it isdiflScult 

 to find them in the undergrowth, as they so 

 thoroughly conceal themselves in the rank grass 

 and bushes. The species prefer low, damp woods 

 and the edges of clearings. The soug is Zw e e e 

 eeeeeeeeeee, long drawn out. The notes 

 often seem to come from a distance when the bird 

 is (piite near; again the singer may be at quite a 



distance and the bird be searched for near at hand. 

 The notes are very deceptive. There arc other 

 notes of the Golden-wing, a half song difficult to 

 describe, and the usual call notes, low chirps com- 

 mon to so many of the Warblers. 



28. [85.] Hdmiuthopharja rnfimpilbi (Wils.) 

 Baird. Nashville Warbler. — Arrives from Jlay ;! 

 to 10. Remains with us until the last of the 

 month and occasionally later. It may remain 

 through the Summer, but has never been taken to 

 my knowledge at a time to lead me to think that 

 it nested here. 



The Nashville is an active and pleasing Warbler 

 and well known to all the collectors. In a large 

 TiUiiarack swamp near Sugar-loaf Lake, hundreds 

 uiay be heard singing from the 10th to the 20th of 

 May. The song is similar to the syllables Gi twee 

 ca twee ca twee ca twee twee twee twee twee, or m 

 weet cii weet ca weet tweetU teetle teetle, uttered in a 

 sprightly manner as the little fellow skips about 

 among the branches. 



In the Autumnal migration the birds reach us 

 in the latter par*, of .\ugust and remain a month. 

 At this time of the year the song is seldom if ever 

 heard. I have only heard the call, a simple chirp. 



29. [87.] Ildiuiiithiiphfirjii perer/riiia (Wils.) 

 Baird. Tennessee Warbler. — This is the last 

 member of this genus to arrive, and in fiict one of 

 our latest arrivals of all thenugrants. My earliest 

 recorded arrival is May 18, and my latest date re- 

 corded, as the first seen for the season, is May 23. 

 The species passes ra])idly by us and it is rare to 

 meet with specimens for more than two days 

 during Spring. 



The species arrives so late that the foliage has 

 reached that degree of density by the time of their 

 appearance that few are seen. The Tennessee 

 keeps in the tops of the tallest trees, principally 

 the Elms and Maples, and it is difficult to .secure 

 specimens. They are more of ten heard than seen, 

 and frequently a flock will pass through without 

 a chance of securing a shot. Occasionally a bird 

 will be seen to dart from the dense lop of a tree, 

 immediately enter the foliage of the ne.\t before a 

 shot can be had. The song is a rather sharp 

 chatter, but not at all like that of the Pine War- 

 bler. The call notes are short chirps, similar to 

 others of the genus 



30. [88.] Paniki ameiiertmi (Linn.) Bp. Blue 

 Yellow-backed Warbler. — .\rrives from April 23 

 to May 11. I have never taken a specimen in 

 .lune in the county and do not think that the 

 species remains to breed. It may prove to be a 

 rare Summer resident, as it is not rare during 

 Summer a hundred miles north. The song of the 

 Yellow-back is very pleasing although simple. 

 The division of the note is something like this, 



