126 



ORNITHOLOGIST 



[Vol. 15-No. 8 



Nesting of the Golden-Crowned 

 Thrush in Chester County, Penn 





Although a common breeder in Chester 

 County, Penn., the nest of this species (Seiurus 

 auricaplUus) is by no means easy to find, and 

 it was not until tliis year that I succeeded in 

 obtaining any sets of their eggs. 



My first nest was found on June 12, 1887, and 

 contained young birds. It was placed on the 

 ground in woods near a stream of water. 



The next nest I found was on June 6, 18.-8. 

 I was searching in a thick woods when sud- 

 denly a Golden-crowned Thrush got up and 

 ran along the ground as if she had a nest. It 

 was on the bank of a stream, and the ferns 

 and small shrubs were growing plentifully, so 

 that I looked for some moments without suc- 

 cess. Finally I raised a small dead branch and 

 threw it out of the way. I then noticed a 

 small piece of dried grass, and on stooping 

 down to investigate it, it proved to be the nest. 

 Imagine my disgust, however, on finding that 

 I had unconsciously trodden on it and broken 

 three of the five eggs which it contained. 



In 18S'J I found two more nests but was un- 

 successful in obtaining sets of eggs from them. 

 The first one was found on June Dth, and con- 

 tained three young birds and two eggs which 

 were about ready to hatch. This nest was an 

 unusually large one, and its top was at least 

 three inches from the ground. It was placed 

 near a large tree, in a rather open spot in tlie 

 woods. The birds displayed great uneasiness 

 at my presence; the female running along the 

 ground and trying to decoy me off. 



Another nest was found on the 2lst of June, 

 ISSi), and contained five eggs, but as they were 

 nearly ready to hatch I did not disturb them. 

 The way in which this nest was found was 

 somewhat peculiar. It was almost at the 

 foot of a dead tree near the top of which 

 was a Flicker's hole. I rapped on the trunk 

 of the tree and out came a Flicker. Just at 

 the same minute my cousin, who was with me, 

 called my attention to a Golden-crowned 

 Thrush which had Just gotten up at my feet. 

 Tlie nest was very cleverly hidden, only a 

 small corner of it being visible and the rest 

 was concealed in a hole in the bank. 



It was not until the 22d of May, 1890, that 

 I was able to obtaiTi any sets of eggs. On 

 that date I was fortunate enough to obtain 

 two fine nests of five each. The first was 

 situated on a steep hillside in a woods. The 

 bird got upright under my feet, and it was an 

 easy matter to find the nest. The Golden- 



crowned Thrush is very courageous and does 

 all in its power to prevent you from disturbing 

 its eggs or young, and this one was no exception 

 to that rule, making a great fuss while I was 

 packing up tlie eggs. 



The second nest was found in a different 

 part of the same woods. It was situated on a 

 level piece of ground, under a bunch of ferns, 

 and near a stream of water. Both these sets 

 were perfectly fresh. 



On the next day (May 23d) I found two 

 more sets of three and four eggs respec- 

 tively. Each of these nests contained a Cow- 

 bird's egg. They were both in tlie same 

 woods within twenty-five or thirty yards of 

 each other. Each of them was near a stream 

 of water and towards the centre of the woods. 



This Warbler does not seem to have the same 

 fondness for building its nest in or near the 

 edge of woods that other Warblers in this 

 neighborhood seem to have. Another nest was 

 found on the 2d of June containing the unusual 

 number of six eggs. It was placed on the 

 ground near a stream of water like nearly all 

 the others. 



My last nest was found on the 3d of June, 

 and contained young birds. 



My younger brother, Henry Norris, also found 

 two nests, one of which taken on June 1st con- 

 tained three eggs and a Cowbird's (unfortu- 

 nately too much incubated to be preserved) 

 and another on June 7th containing young 

 birds. Both of these nests were on hillsides 

 in the woods. 



So far I have had more difficulty in finding- 

 nests of the Golden-crowned Thrush than of 

 the Kentucky Warbler although the former is 

 much the commoner bird. The principal diffi- 

 culty in finding the nest is the fact of their 

 being domed over, and looking so much like a 

 bunch of dried grass; while the Warbler's 

 nest being open at the top makes it easier to 

 discover. 



The time to look for their eggs in this local- 

 ity seems to be from the 20th of May to the 

 1st of Jiuie, and it is hard to say exactly what 

 kind of a woods they prefer, but a level spot 

 near a stream of water wOiere the ground is 

 covered with ferns, etc., is about as good as 

 any. 



In conclusion I would remark that in my 

 opinion the eggs of this bird iire among the 

 prettiest of the Warbler's, and it is well wortii 

 the collector's time to obtain a series of them 

 as nearly every set is different. 



J. P. Norrh, Jr. 

 I'hiludelphia, Penn. 



