20 



THE OOLOGIST. 



torn lands. Heire, in the willow swamps, 

 wherea decayed, water soaked stumps 

 are scattered thickly here aud there 

 among the willows, you will make the 

 acquaintance of the Prothonotarv. 



Iq the breeding season, the usual song 

 of the male bird can be heard from 

 early morn until dark. It is very 

 pleasing to the ear and much resembles, 

 at a distance, the notes of a Solitary 

 Sandpiper, but a description would be 

 useless. , 



The males are very pugnacious at 

 this season and fierce encounters fre- 

 quently take place. I have often seen 

 two bright little fellows fall into the 

 water, while tightiug in mid air, but 

 dart off in opposite directions like two 

 golden meteors. 



The great quantities of drift-wood 

 floating in the stagnant water among 

 the trees, contain myriad of insects up- 

 on which these birds feed. Here, one 

 can see them, hopping from log to log, 

 feeding on an insect there or pulling 

 some unfortunate spider from a crevice 

 here, and occasionally running up the 

 sides of a stump in the manner of a 

 creeper. The male is a venturesome, 

 little fellow, and, while the female is 

 sitting, explores every nook and crevice 

 in the vieiuity, sometimes being quite 

 surprised at meeting one of his tribe in 

 a hole that he is about to enter. I. 

 at one time, saw a male clinging to an 

 old mossy stump and the contrast of 

 colors was beautiful. 

 Soon after their arrival from the south, 

 mating begins and the two little lovers, 

 after wandering and exploring, select 

 some cavity in a water soaked stump 

 for their domicile. 



The stump selected, is generally a 

 short one, and, in nearly all cases, 

 either standing in or projecting over 

 the water. I have found stumps, con- 

 taining nests, on dry ground, but in 

 these cases, the nests being built at 

 high water, which, receding left the 

 .stumps high and dry. The heights of 



the holes and stumps vary from one to 

 fifteen feet, the latter being rare. The 

 average height is about three feet above 

 the water. 



The cavity is filled with materials, 

 gathered close at hand, within two or 

 three inches of the entrance. These 

 materials differ considerably in some 

 nests, but an average nest is built of 

 bark strips, dried grass, dead leaves 

 and moss. Some have an addition of 

 fiberous roots, stems and hair, while 

 others lack the moss. The cavity of 

 the nest is neatly rounded, measuring 

 about two inches in diameter by one 

 and a half in depth. Afew nests out 

 of the ordinary line are worth de- 

 scribing. 



Probably the most handsome nest 

 was found in a large, rotten, water 

 soaked cavity, within a few inches of 

 the water. The materials were entire- 

 ly of bright green moss, kept fresh by 

 its damp situation. This nest filled 

 with its speckled eggs and the golden 

 yellow birds, will long be retained in 

 the memory of the writer. One nest 

 was constructed partly of snake skins. 

 in a deep bowl-like hollow, on the top 

 of a stnmp, I found a nest, and also 

 one in an old woodpecker's hole about 

 twenty feet above the water in a solid 

 dead tree. I have never found a nest 

 in an out building as has been described 

 by some. 



The eggs of this warbler are exquisite. 

 Very little idea can be obtained, from 

 a few eggs, of the vast variation in 

 color, size and shape, The average egg 

 is of a glossy, creamy white, blotched, 

 spotted and speckled with a rich chest- 

 nut i-ed. Some do .not show the gloss 

 and generally have only a few shell 

 markings. Others are more of a buff 

 shade, while some are so thickly cover- 

 ed with markiugs as to completely ob- 

 scure the ground color. Lilac mark- 

 ings are frequent. Some of my linest 

 eggs are clear white, very glossy, and 



