THE NIDIOLOGIST 



49 



on his bright, yellow breast, though the 

 chances are the performer will disappear 

 and in the next few minutes seem to sing 

 all around us as he skips about, out of 

 sight in the bushes. Unlike many of our 

 familiar birds he does not cease singing 

 when nesting during the middle of the day, 

 but keeps pace with the Red-eyed Vireos of 

 the grove, and the Warbling Vireos who 

 bubble forth in the spotted shade in the 

 neighboring elm. 



The Yellow Warbler reaches Southern 

 Michigan in the latter part of April, and 

 though it may not be recorded until May i, 

 I have observed a specimen on April 19, 

 between the 42nd and 43rd parallels, N. 

 latitude. Few are seen at first, and mostly 

 males — but in a very short time the haunts 

 ajre filled. 



One locality, near Kalamazoo, is called to 

 mind, a small stream, noted for its trout. 

 In the neighborhood of this brook the Yel- 

 low Warblers build abundantly. While 

 silently whipping the brook I have fre- 

 quently observed the little yellow meteors 

 within a few j^ards of me, and have com- 

 bined the pleasure of trouting with the ob- 

 servations on my favorites. Few of the 

 younger collectors are aware of the advan- 

 tages of sitting in a secluded place, in wood 

 or field, and awaiting developments. Some 

 of my most interesting diFCOveries have 

 been made when quietly seated in a retired 

 spot watching a familiar bird. 



These birds, when unsuspicious — a con- 

 dition which obtains in a short time, pro- 

 vided a stroller remains quiet after entering 

 their haunts, have many interesting traits, 

 unobserved by those who hastily pass. 

 The little performers are so erratic and vi- 

 vacious that it is impossible to tell what 

 they will do as we watch their movements. 

 Flying from bush to bush, now skipping 

 from twig to twig: first concealed in a 

 thicket, then swaying from the end of a 

 supple willow spray, and frequently utter- 

 ing their vivacious notes, they are ever 

 pleasing to the eye and ear. 



Many are apparently mated within a 

 week of their arrival. The battles between 

 the males during early May are amusing, 

 at least to the spectator, and they are so 

 common that it seems reasonable to sup- 

 pose that the birds secure new mates each 

 year, although this is contrary to the theo- 

 ries of some observers of our song-birds, 



who claim that birds of this class are con- 

 stant in their attachments. 



The nest is usually begun by the middle 

 of May, but often earlier. The pair are 

 very deliberate in building, often occupy- 

 ing ten days to two weeks in its comple- 

 tion and rarely less than a week in con- 

 struction. It is almost invariably placed 

 in a bush. A wild rose, alder or any other 

 of the bushes or smaller trees, or even in a 

 tangle of vines and weeds, occasionally a 

 hawthorn or even a hazel bush or black- 

 berry briar. Sometimes nests are found in 

 gardens or orchards, when apple, pear or 

 plum trees may be chosen, and I found one 

 nest in a currant bush. The nest is gener- 

 ally placed at from four to ten feet from the 

 ground, and rarely at a greater, altitude 

 than twenty feet. The sites chosen are 

 usually near the courses of streams or on 

 lower ground bordering lakes and ponds. 

 When higher situations are selected it is 

 quite common to find a low patch of land 

 near at hand, but this is not always so. 



The nest is usually situated in a fork, 

 and is often so interlaced with the twigs 

 and thorns that it can only be torn from its 

 attachments with difficulty; The twigs 

 supporting the nest, bearing large leaves, 

 when the young appear in the structure, 

 look as if they grew through or from the 

 nest, and give it a queer appearance. Ex- 

 ternally the nest is composed of a substance 

 resembling tow, and of a grayish-ashy color, 

 but sometimes it appears very light when 

 seen from a distance. The material is tena- 

 cious and disposed in layers. The lining 

 is composed of a variety of softer materials, 

 among which is the downy portions of vari- 

 ous catkins, making a soft bed for the eggs. 

 Occasionally a pink, cottony substance, 

 which I think is from the ferns, is added, 

 both inside in abundance and also exter- 

 nally to a degree. This gives a strange 

 but agreeable aspect to the little home. 



The Summer Yellowbird has a peculiar- 

 ity in leaving the newly made nest for some 

 time after completion, before depositing 

 eggs. This period, usually from three to 

 ten days, is not rarely extended to two 

 weeks or more. That bird of low social 

 taste, the Cow Bunting, who is eyer on the 

 alert for a chance to drop unsolicited dona- 

 tions in the homes of other birds, takes ad- 

 vantage of this habit of waiting and often 

 deposits eggs in advance of the eggs of the 

 rightful owner. There is, perhaps, no bird 



