THE CHUCK- WILL'S- WIDOW. 145 



in a season; but this last record, which is from Titusville, Florida, seems to indi- 

 cate that two broods may occasionally be raised under favorable circumstances. 

 The most northern breeding record I have is one from the Washita River, in the 

 Indian Territory, in about latitude 35°, but it undoubtedly breeds in suitable 

 localities as far north as latitude 38°. Although fairly abundant throughout the 

 greater part of Texas during the breeding season, it is not found anywhere in 

 the lower Rio Grande Valley or vicinity, and I have no authentic records of its 

 breeding there, where it appears to be entirely replaced by Merrill's Parauque, 

 Nyctidromus albicoUis merriUi. It appears to be quite common in Putnam County, 

 Florida, and the majority of the eggs in the United States National Museum 

 collection were obtained there by Dr. William L. Ralph, where it mostly nested 

 in oak thickets, under trees whose branches nearly touched the ground, both in 

 swampy and dry situations. 



Chuck-will's-widow makes no nest; the eggs are usually laid on the dry 

 leaves covering the ground, in deciduous forests, and occasionally on the bare 

 ground, either in flat woods or on brush-covered and rocky hillsides — in fact, 

 such nesting places seem to be preferred by this species to flat, level woods, 

 when obtainable. The two eggs are deposited on alternate days, and incubation 

 commences with the first egg laid. I believe the female performs the duties of 

 incubation almost entirely, but both sexes are very devoted parents. The bird 

 on the nest will try as assiduously to draw the intruder away from its young as 

 the Ruffed Grouse, by feigning injury and fluttering along on the ground. It 

 usually also emits a hissing noise when disturbed. 



The eggs of Chuck-will's-widow are among the handsomest found in the 

 United States; the shell is fine-grained, rather thin, and moderately glossy in 

 most cases. They are usually elliptical oval in shape, or about equally rounded 

 on both ends. The ground color of these eggs is of such a subtle tint that it is 

 almost impossible to describe it accurately; it varies from a rich cream, with a 

 faint pinkish suff'usion, to a pale cream, and more rarely to a pure white. They 

 are in most cases more or less profusely blotched, marbled, and spotted with 

 different shades of brown, tawny, fawn, and Isabel-color, underlaid and mixed 

 with lighter shades of ecru drab, lavender, pearl gray, and pale heliotrope 

 purple. In an occasional specimen some of the markings take the shape of 

 irregular lines and tracings, like those of the eggs of the Grackles; in others 

 they are fine and minute, obscuring the ground color to some extent. In some 

 specimens the darker shades predominate ; in others, the lighter ; in fact, there 

 is an endless variation in the style of markings, but in the entire series there is 

 not a single specimen which is not jDerceptibly marked. The eggs are rather 

 large, considering the size of the bird. 



The average measurement of forty-two specimens in the United States 

 National Museum collection is 35.87 by 25.76 millimetres, or about 1.41 by 1.01 

 inches. The largest egg of the series measures 40.13 by 27 43 millimetres, or 

 1.58 by 1.08 inches; the smallest, 35.30 by 25.15 millimetres, or 1.39 by 0.99 

 inches. 



1(5896— No. 3 10 



