BLUE YELLOW-BACKED WAEBLER. 239 



PaRDLA AMERICANA (L.) Bp. 



Blue "Vellow-backed. AVarbler. 



Sylvia americana, Kirtland, OUio Geolog. Siirv., 18.J8, 16;!, Hi. 



Sylvicola americana, Read, Fam. Visitor, iii, 1853, 423; Philad, Acad Nat. Sei., vi, 1853, 

 395. 



Parula americana, Baird, P. E, R. Eep. ix, 1858, 239. — Wheaton, Ohio Agric. Eep. for 

 IbCO, 363 ; Reprint, 1661, 5 ; Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Eep. for 1874, 563 ; Re- 

 print, 1875,, 3. — Langdhn, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877,5; Eevised List, Journ. Cm. Soo. 

 Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 171 ; Reprint, 5. 



Farus americana, LiNNiEQS, Syst. Nat., i, 1758, 190, 

 Sylvia americana, Latham, lad. Orn., 11, 179i), 520. 

 Parula americana, Bonaparte, Comp. and Geog. List., 183S, 20. 



Male in spring, above, bine, back' with a golden brown patch, throat and breast 

 yellow, with a rich brown or blackish patch, the formei s unetimes exi ending along the 

 sides; belly, eye-lids, two wing bars and several tail apot.^ whuti ; lores black; upper 

 mandible black, lower, floah colored ; female in spring, with the blue less bright, back 

 and throat patches not so well detiued ; yonng, with these patches obscure or wanting, 

 but always recognizable by the other marks and very i-mall size. Length 4i-4f ; wing 

 2i ; tail if. 



Habitat, Eastern North Atiierica, Went to Nebraska, and Colorado, North to British 

 America, Greenland casually, vSontb to West indies, Mexico, and Gaatemala. 



Not common spring and fall migritnt in Southern and Mid,dle, summer 

 resident in Northern Ohio. Mr. Read notes it as " common in the spring, 

 a few spend the summer.'' Dr. Kirtland says, " I have repeatedly seen 

 them teediug their young in July." It may breed in the vicinity of Col- 

 umbus, as I saw a specimen in my garden, June 30, 1879. Mr. Ridgway 

 says it breeds in Southern Illinois. 



The Blue Yellow-back Warbler arrives early in May and returns in 

 September. They frequent the tops of the tallest trees in the highest 

 woods, and are especially noticeable on hickory, ash and oak trees, which, 

 at ttie time of the spring migration, have not much foliage. They are 

 actively engaged hopping and flying from twig to twig in search of food. 

 Their movements combine those of the Titmice and Redstart. Their soog 

 is short and feeble. 



The nest is constructed of long gray lichens, sometimes simply ah ex- 

 cavation in a bunch of lichen. The eggs measure .63 by .49, are white, 

 spotted with lilac, slate, and various shades of brown. 



Genus PEOTONOTARIA Baird. 



Bill conical, compressed towards the end, as long as the head, longer than middle toe, 

 tinnotched. Hind claw but little shorter than its digit ; middle toe and claw only three- 

 fourths the tarsus. 



