276 



SCIENCE. 



[N. S. VOL.XXII. No. 557. 



good field ornithologists declare that they havo 

 seen either Helmmthophila leucohronchialis 

 or H. pinus attending young which they sup- 

 posed to be H. leucohronchialis. And it is 

 also on record that a parent leucotronchialis 

 was observed with two young, feeding them. 

 This bird was observed with these young ones 

 two different days in the same locality. But 

 two young composed the brood, and Dr. 

 Bishop, who saw and collected them, writes: 

 ' A careful search on both days through the 

 adjacent country failed to disclose any other 

 member of the genus Helminthophila/ He 

 believed the parent bird to be a female and 

 also concluded, though the two young were 

 still in the down plumage of nestlings, from 

 the final feathering that showed through, that : 

 ' One, and probable that the other, would have 

 become a typical specimen of H. pinus.' 

 These facts" would in themselves seem to 



" ' Notes on Helminthophila leucohronchialis,' 

 by Edwin H. Eames, Seymour, Conn., Auk, Vol. 

 v., No. 4, pp. 427-428, 1888. Records the cap- 

 ture or observation of six adult and several young 

 in a brood, between May 26, 1888, and June 22, 

 of the same year, near Seymour, Conn. From 

 this series of notes I quote Mr. Eames, writing 

 of H. leucohronchialis, the date being June 3 : 

 " At last with more eagerness than usual it de- 

 scended, and disappeared in the bushes (an un- 

 usual occurrence ) , where it apparently took pos- 

 session of its nest, as in less than half a minute 

 thereafter an H. finus, the first I had seen in the 

 neighborhood, flew hastily from about the same 

 place. This occurred at about sunset, and be- 

 tween that and dark leucohronchialis did not 

 again appear in sight. I had previously had it 

 in view, or could hear its song, almost contin- 

 uously. On several days following I searched this 

 thicket thoroughly, as it seemed, and once suc- 

 ceeded in flushing a pinus, but could not even then 

 find its nest. In company with pinus, leuco- 

 hronchialis cautiously approached and surveyed 

 me for a short time, then departed with no ap- 

 parent misgivings. At all other times leuco- 

 hronchialis was near by and always reconnoitered 

 the track of my careful search when I had moved 

 to some distance, then, apparently satisfied, pur- 

 sued its avocations as before. I was not able 

 to visit the spot again until June 17, and neither 

 then nor since have I found this leucohronchialis, 

 but I did find a brood of several young being fed 



controvert the theory of hybridity, for, though 

 hybrids do occur among wild birds, they can 



by an H. pinus, possibly the result of a union be- 

 tween the two. These two birds were the only 

 ones of the genus which I had at any time de- 

 tected in the locality." 



' Notes on the Blue-winged Warbler and its 

 Allies (Helminthophila pinus, H. leucohxonchialis, 

 H. laicrencei and H. chrysoptera) in Connecticut,' 

 by Edwin 11. Eames, Auk, Vol. VI., No. 4, pp. 

 305-310, 1889. Speaking of the comparative 

 abundance of //. chrysoptera and H. leucohronchi- 

 alis in southern Connecticut, Mr. Eames writes: 

 " Of H. chrysoptera but little can be said, as it is 

 properly considered a rather rare bird here, and 

 our yearly records are but few, usually less than 

 half a dozen." 



"The beautiful H. leucohronchialis is much ( ?) 

 more common than the latter {chrysoptera) and 

 is eagerly sought after by most of our collectors, 

 latterly with good success considering its former 

 (supposed) rarity." During the spring of 1889 

 he procured five specimens, and recorded the 

 breeding of leucohronchialis as follows : " Mr. C. 

 K. Averill, Jr., of this city, found a leucohronchi- 

 alis early in June. * '* * June 24 I accom- 

 panied him to the place and we soon had the 

 pleasure of watching the bird at shorter range 

 than I think has fallen to the lot of others, i. e., 

 three to ten feet. * * * It came to the same 

 conspicuous clump of bushes and briar many 

 times, with from one to five minutes' intermission, 

 each time with one or more small worms, about 

 three quarters of an inch long, first reconnoitering, 

 then cautiously approaching, and again hastily 

 leaving a part of this clump of bushes not over 

 two feet in extent. We failed to discover the 

 identity of the object of its cares, but I liaA'e rea- 

 son to believe it was a young cowbird. The rest 

 of this brood was being fed by the only H. pinus 

 (a female) to be found in the neighborhood. '■ * * 

 They showed a marked general similarity to the 

 young of pinus. I shot this male leucohronchialis 

 August 8 and also one of the young, carefully 

 observing that the others Avere similar to the one 

 killed, which was altogether too familiar with the 

 adult bird to allow a possibility of doubt con- 

 cerning its male parent. 



■' In this, as in many other species of our 

 smaller birds, such an affection is shown for the 

 haunts occupied during the nesting period that 

 they rarely leave them until after moulting, or 

 even till the commencement of the fall migration. 

 In the above case I never failed to find the birds 



