fully overhead, we may see the nest placed but a few feet from the ground, in the fork of a limb. The 

 female alarmed, will flutter away stealthily, and we may not catch another glimpse of her, nor of her 

 mate, even though we hear them both anxiously consulting together at a little distance. The nest is not 

 such an elegant affair as might be desired; it is, in fact, bulky and rude, if not actually slovenly. It is 

 formed entirely of the long, slender, tortuous stems of woody climbers, and similar stunt rootlets; the 

 base and outer walls being very loosely interlaced, the inner more compactly woven, with a tolerably firm 

 brim of circularly-disposed fibers. Sometimes there is a little horse-hair lining, oftener not. A very com- 

 plete nest before me is difficult to measure, from its loose outward construction, but may be called six 

 inches across outside by four deep; the cavity three inches wide by one and a half deep. 



EGGS: 



"The nest contained three eggs, which I think is the usual number in this latitude; four I have 

 only found once. The eggs are usually rather elongate, but obtuse at the smaller end. Different specimens 

 measure 1.00x0.75, 1.08x0.70, 1.03x0.75, 1.02x0.72, 0.96x0.76; by which dimensions the variation 

 in shape is denoted. The average is about that of the first measurement given. They are of a light 

 and rather pale green color, profusely speckled with dull, reddish-brown, usually in small and also rather 

 diffuse pattern, but sometimes quite sharply marked; the sharper markings are usually the smallest. 

 There is sometimes much confluence, or at least aggregation, about the greater end, but the whole sur- 

 face is always marked." Maynard places the complement of eggs at four in number. He says they are 

 oval in form, bluish-green in color, spotted and blotched with brown and lilac, and measure from .68 x .92 

 to .75x1.00. Capen writes about the eggs under consideration as follows: "Usually four in number, 

 often three, and seldom five, are bluish-green, or dull, greenish-gray, spotted all over with obscure lilac, 

 pale, reddish, and purplish-browns of varying intensity. In others, the markings are darker and more 

 sharply defined." Three eggs before me taken from a nest built near Cleveland, measure respectively, 

 1.04 x .67, .99 x .69, and .98 x .66." 



DIFFERENTIAL POINTS : 



There is a general similarity between the nest and eggs of the Rose-breasted Grosbeak, and the nest 

 and eggs of the Summer Redbird, and the Scarlet Tanager, but the difference in size suffices for easy 

 differentiation. See Table. 



REMARKS : 



The three eggs illustrated on Plate LXVIII, Fig. 11, show the common sizes and patterns of 

 markings of the eggs of the Rose-breasted Grosbeak. The specimens were selected from two sets from 

 Northern Ohio. 



310 



