378 



BIRDS — TT RANNIDiE 



four miles east of the city, I found both species together, Traill's Fly- 

 catcher, frequenting the s-wamp, and when disturbed flying to the forest 

 trees, while the notes of the Acadian Flycatcher were heard at but a short 

 distance beyond. Further observation convinces me that in this vicinity 

 the eggs of Trailli are of a darker ground color, and spotted with darker 

 brown than those of acadicus. The spots on Trailli look as if made with 

 thick paint; many spots are surrounded with a halo of lighter brown as 

 if the paint had run. 



In the Bulletin of the Nuttall Ornithological Club, v, 1880, 20, Dr. 

 Coues, with the object " to confirm and amplify his (Henshaw's) obser- 

 vations," describes the nests and eggs of these two species, from specimens 

 sent him by Mr. 0. Widmann, from St. Louis, Missouri. In so doing he 

 quotes extensively from Mr. Widmann's letter of transmission, which 

 shows this speoies with him to differ as much in its manners from Ohio 

 birds as my description makes them diflfer from eastern examples. Dr. 

 Coues' description of the nest and eggs is, but more minutely and emphati- 

 cally, that of Mr. Henshaw. He concludes that the eggs of Trailli "are so 

 similar to those of aeadieus that no one should pretend to tell them apart 

 with confidence." He further quotes a letter from Mr. Allen, relating to 

 the same specimens, showing the difference between eastern and western 

 nests of Trailli as follows : 



"The New England nests (Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermnut specimens) are 

 scarcely distinguishable from the ordinary nest of Cyanospiza oyanea, and consequently 

 snggest no comparison with the nest of E. minimus, they being bulky structures of coarse 

 materials, which no one would think could belong to the species building the small, 

 compact nests of soft materials that come to us from Ohio, through Dr. J. M. Wheaton, 

 or from Missouri, through Mr. Widmann." 



In this connection I may add that the description of the eggs by Dr. 

 Brewer, referred to by Mr. Henshaw, is correct for eastern specimens, 

 western eggs being much more buffy. I have surmised that our birds 

 might be identical with the western variety, pusilltts, but Mr. Brewster 

 informs me that he can discover no difference between Ohio_ and New 

 England birds. 



Other localities frequented by these birds in the breeding season, are a 

 willow-covered island in the Scioto River, a short distance below the city 

 and the "starch-factory swamp," a recently drained region below the city, 

 lying between the canal and river. In the former of these localities I 

 have found but few nests, search for them being an almost hopeless task, 

 for the reason that as the islandis frequently flooded, nearly every willow 

 fork is filled with a bunch of drift leaves. It is not impossible that such 

 qualities may have been chosen for nesting places for the protection 



