sylvicolidjei—sylvicolinjE: true wabblebs. 289 



Wing sborter than tail, or equal and head ashy . , Geothlypis 42 



Wing longer than tail, or equal and head not ashy 



Tarsus shorter than middle toe and claw Mniotilta 33 



Tarsus not shorter than middle toe and claw. 



Bictal bristles evidently reaching far beyond nostrils. 



Tail black and orange, or black and white, or dark and yellow Seiophaga 46 



Tail ashy edged, with white, and head with red Cardallina 45 



Tail greenish, unmarked, or with white blotches . Myiodioctes 44 



Rictal bristles evidently not reaching far beyond nostrils, or not evident at all. 

 Tail-feathers all unmarked. 



Bill at least 0.50 inches long, very acute ; 4 black stripes on head, or none . Helmintherus 36 

 Bill not O.SO inches long. 



Wing over 2.50 inches ; bill not acute ; bright yellow below, or head ashy . Oporomis 41 

 Wing not over 2.50 inches ; bill very acute ; no bristles . . . . Helmintltophita 37 



Tail-feathers blotched with white, or yellow on inner webs. 

 Rictal bristles not evident. 



Bill not 0.50 inch long ; whole fore parts not yellow .... Belmimthophila 37 



Bill at least 0.50 inch long ; whole fore parts yellow ProtonotaHa 35 



Rictal bristles very evident. 



Back blue with gold spot, throat and legs yellow Parula 34 



Head orange-brown with black bar through eye . . . . . Peueedramus 38 



Coloration otherwise ... . Dendraca 39 



Diagnostics or Characteristics of some of the Genera of Sylvicolidae. 



Genera MnioiUta, Pamla, and Peueedramus are creeping warblers, with certain slight modifications of the 

 foet, enabling them to scramble about the trees much like creepers or nuthatches. 



Genera Geothlypis and Oporomis are ground warblers, with the feet modified in adaptation to terrestrial 

 life. Genus Slums is similar in this respect ; the species wallc on the ground, and act in some respects like Mota- 

 cillines. 



Genera Protonota/ria, Helmvntherus, and HelmintIiophilaa>ve^'worm^eating" warblers (the old genus Ver- 

 mivora), with slight rictal bristles or none. 



Genera Setqphaga, Cardellina, and Myiodioctes are fiy-catcking warblers, with strongly bristled bill and 

 muscicapine habits, in some respects like species of Tyramiidce. 



Genus Icteria is isolated by its peculiarities of form and habits, and great size for this family. 



Genus Dendrceca comprehends the wood warblers par excellence, — the largest genus, with over twenty 



Bill : — Peculiarly stout, high, and compressed in Icteria ; — Cattish, and strongly bristled in Seiophaga, 

 Cajrdellvna and Myiodioctes ; — large, with straightish outlines, scarcely or not bristled, and very acute in Pro- 

 toTiotaria and Helmintherus ; — small, unbristled, and very acute in Helminthophila. 



Feet : — Tarsus longest, slenderest, and usually pale-tinted in the ground warblers ; — shortest in the creep- 

 ing warblers, with relatively longest toes. 



WiKOS ; — Shorter than the tail in Icteria and species of Geothlypis ; — about equal to the tail in species of 

 Geothlypis, Siwrus, Setophaga, and Cardellina ; — usually decidedly longer than the tail. 



Tail : — The feathers (some or all) blotched with white in the following : Mniotilta, Parula, Protonotaria, 

 species of Helminthophila, all Dendr(Bcce excepting D, cestiva, Pettoedramus, one Myiodioctes, one Setophaga. 

 The feathers plain olivaceous, or otherwise like the back, unmarked, in species of Helminthophila, in Helmintherus, 

 Oporomis, Geothlypis, Siurus, Icteria, species of Myiodioctes, Cardellina ; yellow and dark in one Setophaga and 

 one Den^asca. 



15. Subfamily SYLVICOLIN/E : True Warblers. 



Bill conoid-elongate, shorter than head, about as high as, or rather higher than wide oppo- 

 site the nostrils, not hooked, and with hut a slight notch, if any, at tip : commissure straight 

 or slightly curved ; a few rictal bristles, reaching little, if any, beyond the nostrils, or none. 

 Wings pointed, usually longer than the narrow, nearly even tail. 



This beautiful gi'oup, which comprehends the great majority of the Warblers, is specially 

 characteristic of North America, and reaches its highest development in the eastern portions of 

 the continent, mainly through the preponderance of species of the largest genus, Bendrceca. 

 All the genera and most of the species of SylvicoUna are found in this country, mainly as mi- 

 grants, which appear in the spring, pass the summer, and retire for the winter to Mexico, the 

 West Indies, and Central or even South America ; though some pass the inclement season 

 within our limits, and one at least is found in winter in Northern States. 



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