l3o General Notes. [July 



Capture of the Yellow-breasted Chat at Albany, N. Y. — In the 

 latter part of May, 1882, I observed two birds of the appearance of the 

 Yellow-breasted Chat {Ictei-ia virens) in a sunny thicket between two 

 small pieces of woods. But as they were silent and very shy, I was not 

 positive of their identity. On the 19th of May of the present year, while 

 collecting in the same thicket, I heard the unmistakable notes of a Chat. 

 Its cries were very frequently uttered, but so shy was the bird, that, 

 although searching for him nearly every day afterwards, it was not until 

 the 26th of the same month that I secured him. 



On the 19th of May I also secured three Northern Phalaropes {Lobifes 

 hyferboreus, Cuv.) at a small lake near Albany.— G. A. Lintner, 

 Albany, N. T. 



Nesting of Chrysomitris pinus at Sing Sing, N. Y. — The first of 

 last of October, Pine Finches were first seen by us, in this locality, indi- 

 viduals and small flocks flying over uttering their characteristic and not 

 unpleasant note. By the middle of the month they became common, 

 frequenting the stubble and potato fields, feeding on the seeds of the 

 ragweed {Atnbrosia artemisicB/olia) . Immense flocks, containing hun- 

 dreds, were often seen. After the middle of December most of these 

 flocks disappeared, a few individuals mixing in with the Redpolls and 

 Goldfinches. About April 20 they began to reappear, and on May 8 I 

 heard a song new to me; following in the direction, I found it to be that 

 of the Pine Finch. The following week the birds were often seen, and 

 their song frequently heard. 



May 16 I saw one busily feeding on the buds of the Norway spruce. 

 Now and then he would stop feeding, hop to the end of a twig, shake out 

 his feathers, raise his crest, and then burst forth in song. While watch- 

 ing him and thinking of the probability of a nest near, he flew a short 

 distance and alighted on the top of a red cedar {Juniperus vti-o-miatta), 

 where he was immediately joined by his mate, her bill containing a quan- 

 tity of soft, down-like material. After a moment's hesitancy, she settled 

 down into a half completed nest. After depositing the materials for the 

 nest, the female would fly away for more, the male would follow her as 

 far as the Norway spruce above mentioned, where he* would await her 

 return ; and as soon as she reappeared he would accompany her to the 

 nest, and alight on the top of the tree, but in no way assisting in gathering 

 material or in the construction of the nest. On May 25 I secured the 

 nest. It was situated about two feet from the top of the tree, and about 

 twenty-four from the ground. It contained four nearly fresh eggs. The 

 nest proper, or outside part, is a frail affair, the lining making up the 

 bulk of the nest. The outer part is made of fine twigs from the Norway 

 spruce, loosely placed together, a few rootlets and pieces of string being 

 interwoven. The lining is very compact, made up of hemp-like material, 

 horse hairs, bits of thread, feathers, rootlets, and like substances. The 

 nest measures eight centimeters in breadth by five centimeters Tn depth ; 

 the cavity five centimeters by three centimeters in depth. The ground 



