626 MICHIGAN BIRD LIFE. 
reddish brown. The eggs probably are of about the same size as those 
of the eastern form which measure .67 by .52 inches. 
While with us during migration this species has only a sharp “chip” 
or “chuck” which is, however, quite characteristic. In its summer home 
it is said to have a pleasant but rather weak trill. 
TECHNICAL DESCRIPTION. 
Adult: Forehead and crown clear chestnut, sharply separated from the color of the 
back, which is grayish-olive, indistinctly streaked with brownish; rump and upper tail- 
coverts usually distinct greenish-yellow; a yellow line from nostril over and behind the 
eye; sides of head and neck like back; under parts yellow, brightest on throat and breast, 
fading to yellowish-white on belly, the chin and throat usually unspotted, the breast and 
sides spotted and streaked with chestnut; under tail-coverts bright yellow; two indistinct 
grayish wing-bars; two outer pairs of tail-feathers with inner webs white at tips. Sexes 
alike. 
Length 4.50 to 5.50 inches; wing 2.35 to 2.65; tail 2.05 to 2.45. 
285. Prairie Warbler. Dendroica discolor (Vieill.). (673) 
Synonyms: Sylvia discolor, Vieill., 1807.—Sylvicola discolor, Jardine, 1832, Aud., 
1839.—Dendroica and Dendreeea discolor of most recent authors.—Sylvia minuta, Wilson, 
1811. 
Fig. 140. 
The male is readily known by the patch of chestnut or brick red spots 
in the middle of the back, and a trace of this is commonly visible in the 
female. The under parts are rich yellow, the sides with dark streaks. 
Distribution.—Eastern United States to the Plains, breeding from 
Florida north to Michigan and southern New England. Winters in southern 
Florida and the West Indies. 
This dainty little warbler appears to be by no means common in Mich- 
igan, yet it has been found here and there in some numbers, particularly 
in Ottawa and Montcalm counties by Dr. 
Morris Gibbs, and on Mackinac Island by S. E. 
White. This latter point would seem to be 
its northern limit in the state, and it is a singular 
fact that, although Mr. White states that it 
was common there in bushy country and that 
he took many specimens between August 10 
and September 6 in 1889, 1890 and 1891, it 
did not appear to be nesting there, and it has 
not been found there since by any one else. 
Moreover, among the thousands of warblers oe 
killed on Spectacle Reef Light, within eighteen u 
or twenty miles of Mackinac Island, not a single Fig, 140, Prairie Warbler. From 
specimen of the Prairie Warbler has ever been [0ves" Key, dthed., 1903. Dana 
found. 
The name ‘Prairie Warbler” is simply a misnomer, since the bird is 
rarely seen on the open prairie, and is not known to nest anywhere in 
the prairie regions of Indiana, Illinois or southern Michigan. On the 
contrary the bird appears to prefer bushy pastures, recently cleared lands, 
and scrubby woods. For this reason the name Red-backed Warbler or 
even Pasture Warbler would be preferable. 
