IQO CHESTNUT-SIDED WARBLER 



abouts. Its "beat' lies between the ground and the tops of si 

 deciduous trees. The few nests I have seen have all been between 

 and five feet from the ground, in bushes. The adults' peculiar m; 

 ings and droop-winged, perk-tailed; and deep-chested attitudes are 

 well known to bear dwelling on hei^. Though potentially quick n 

 ing, the Chestnut-side is by no means restless, as Warblers g( 

 often spending many minutes at a time in one small tree, — and i 

 one of the tamest of the tame." {Thayer, MS). 



Herrick's'' detailed studies of the nesting habits of the Chesti 

 side show how little we know as yet of the more intimate, personal 

 of the home-life of Warblers. 



Song. — "The Chestnut-side, a full-voiced Warbler, has at I 

 two main songs, both of which, but particularly the more lie 

 and less articulate one, are subject to wide variation. Both tj 

 of song are too liquid to be well suggested by English syllal 

 except for the clearly enunciated ending of one of them, — wee-ch 

 Twit-a-wit-a-wit-a-'wit-wee-chew! is something like the phrasing 

 the whole of this song, except that it fails to express the soft flu£ 

 of the first part. The other song is an elaboration of this initial i 

 ing warble, with the wee-chew left off. Hardly any two Chesti 

 sides sing this inarticulate song alike, and almost every indivic 

 plays noticeable variations on his own version of it. In additiot 

 all this, the Chestnut-side is a mocker. One we used to hear, 

 regularly began his wee-chew song with a loud, long, rattling 1 

 almost indistinguishable from the more fluent song of the Sparr 

 and another, that lived near Catbirds, used several unmistakable n 

 of Catbird song. One of the Chestnut-side's two or three or n 

 small call-notes is characteristic, — the others scantily so, if at ; 

 {Thayer, MS.) 



Miss Paddock writes that the first two of the songs given be 

 are usual. They are uttered with much energy and decided ace 

 The last two songs are more like the Redstart's but are without ace 

 and sound as if sung with closed mouth. 



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