280 



SCIENCE. 



[N. S. Vol. XXII. No. 557. 



that were like lawrencei, while, on the other 

 hand, we have three records of the breeding 

 of lawrencei.^'^ First, a female feeding young 

 {it is to he noted in this case Tjoth parents 

 were H. lawrencei), the male having been shot 



an adult female taken at Higliland Falls, N. Y. 

 (cf. Brewster), that these three birds are hybrids 

 between H. chrysoptera and H. jiinus. 



'The Coloration and Relationship of Brewster's 

 Warbler,' by Gerald H. Thayer, Monadnock, N. H. 

 Regards H. later encei as a hybrid between H. pinus 

 and H. chrysoptera because of its color pattern 

 and its rarity. 



Cf. Bishop, Auk, Vol. XX., No. 1, pp. 21-24, 

 1905. 



^° ' Connecticut Notes,' by A. H. Verrill, New 

 Haven, Conn., Auk, Vol. X., No. 3, p. 305, 1893. 

 Mr. Verrill writes: "On May 6, 1893, * * * I 

 procured an adult male Lawrence's warbler. May 

 31, I noticed a Lawrence's warbler which I thought 

 was breeding. On June 5 I again noticed the 

 bird and shot it, and, after hunting some time, I 

 finally flushed the female from her nest which, 

 unfortunately, contained six young birds. I had 

 a very good chance to examine her as she was 

 constantly within six or eight feet from me. The 

 nest was in all respects precisely like that of the 

 blue-winged warbler. The young birds were well 

 feathered out, and several of them showed traces 

 of black on the throat." 



[" The really unfortunate part of the affair 

 seems to have been not that the writer was dis- 

 appointed in his hopes of a set of eggs, but that 

 he failed to capture and rear the yoimg and to 

 secure the female — that he threw away a rare 

 opportunity of casting much light on the status 

 of this doubtful species. — Eds." Auk.] 



' Connecticut Notes,' by Clark Greenwood Voor- 

 hees, New York City, Auk, Vol. XL, No. 3, pp. 

 259-260, 1894. "On the 12th of July (at Green- 

 wich, Conn.), while looking for Helminthophila, I 

 took an adult female, H. lawrencei. The bird is 

 in every Avay like the female H. pinus, excepting 

 that the thoat patch and stripe through the eye, 

 which in the male H. laiorencei are black, are in 

 this specimen dusky olive-green. The specimen 

 is quite similar to the one taken by Mr. H. W. 

 Flint in New Haven several years ago. 



" The young in first plumage which this bird 

 was attending when shot was in every respect 

 typical H. pinus. The male parent was not found, 

 but I feel confident that it was H. pinus,- as the 



just previously. There were six young in this 

 brood, which was not further disturbed, and 

 several of the nestlings, presumably young 

 males, showed traces of black on the throat. 

 Second, a female H. lawrencei discovered at- 

 tending a brood of what appeared to be young 

 H. pinus. The male parent was not seen. 

 Third, a male H. lawrencei mated with a fe- 

 male H. pinus, both parents attending six 

 young (in the nest) which resembled in 

 plumage typical nestlings of H. pinus. 



Moreover, the number of known specimens 

 (plus twenty) is in itself an argument against 

 the theory of hybridity difficult to overcome. 

 As before stated, I believe that here again we 

 have a mutation from H. pinus, which has not 

 flourished to the extent that has H. leuco- 

 hronchialis. 



The next fifty years should go far toward 

 telling the story in regard to both of these 

 birds and it behooves every good field natural- 

 ist not to add more specimens of these hirds 

 to our collections, Tjut to carefully observe 

 them as they exist, alive; to make, if possible, 

 a comparative census of them in given locali- 

 ties where they are of regular occurrence, and 

 to do this annually for imany years to come. 

 Much light, too, may be thrown on their rela- 

 tionship by observing with greater care than 

 has heretofore been given the parentage of all 

 the different nests of Helminthophila, in any 



young were well feathered and showed clearly 

 well-defined black lores of the latter." 



' Breeding of Lawrence Warbler in New York 

 City,' by C. William Beebe, curator of ornithology. 

 New York Zoological Park, Auk, Vol. XXL, No. 

 3, pp. 387-388, 1904. Mr. Beebe records the dis- 

 covery of this bird breeding in the Bronx Park. 

 The birds were observed from May 18 until June 

 16, 1904. The nest was discovered early in June. 

 A male H. lawrencei, typical in appearance, was 

 mated with a female which appeared to be a typ- 

 ical pinus. On June 13 hoth parents were ob- 

 served feeding the six young in the nest. The 

 observers were within eight feet of the birds at 

 this time. The nestlings upon examination were 

 all in the typical nesting plumage of H. pinus, 

 and showed no traces of the black markings of H. 

 la'iorencei. Very wisely these birds were not dis- 

 turbed or collected and it will be interesting to 

 watch future developments in this locality. 



