BLACK-THBOATEB GREEN WAEBLEB. 171 



by the middle of October they all seem to have passed beyond the 

 Imiits of our most southern States. 



The food of this species consists during the summer months of 

 various kinds of flies and caterpillars, many of the former of which 

 it captures by darting after them from its perch, in the manner of 

 Flycatchers and Vireos, emitting, like them also, a clicking sound from 

 its bill. In autumn it is often seen feeding on small berries of various 

 sorts, in which respect also it resembles the birds just mentioned. 



I never found the nest of this bird, of which, however, Mr. Nuttall 

 has given a minute description, which I shall here, with his per- 

 mission, place before you. — 'Last summer, 1830, on the 8th. of June, 

 I was so fortunate as to find a nest of this species, in a perfectly 

 solitary situation, on the Blue Hills of Milton. The female was 

 sitting, and about to hatch. The nest was in a low, thick, and 

 stunted Virginia juniper. When I approached near to the nest the 

 female stood motionless on its edge, and peeped down in such a 

 manner that I imagined her to be a young bird; she then darted 

 directly to the earth and ran, but when deceived I sought her on 

 the ground she had very expertly disappeared, and I now found 

 the nest to contain four roundish eggs, white inclining to flesh- 

 colour, variegated more particularly at the great end, with pale 

 purplish points of various sizes, interspersed with other large spots of 

 brown and blackish. The nest was formed of circularly entwined fine 

 strips of the inner bark of the juniper, and the tough white fibrous 

 bark of some other plant, bedded with soft feathers of the Kobin, and 

 lined with a few horse-hairs and some slender tops of bentgrass, 

 f Affi'ostis./ 



My friend describes the notes of this species as follows: — 'This 

 simple, rather drawling and somewhat plaintive song, uttered at short 

 intervals, resembles the syllables 'te de territica,' sometimes 'tederisca,' 

 pronounced pretty loud and slow, and the tones proceeding from high 

 to low.' These notes I am well acquainted with, but none can des- 

 cribe the songs of our difierent species like Nuttall." 



My figure is taken from Audubon's large folio work, the drawing 

 being kindly executed for me by Mr. Sinclair, of Glasgow, to whom 

 I shall also on another occasion have to express my obligations. 



Figured also by Wilson and Nuttall. 



The e^^ is from my own collection, and is one of a nest of five 

 sent me by Mr. Buckley, of Birmingham. 



EKD OF VOL. II. 



