Nests Saddled on Branches 
Breeding Range—From Pennsylvania, northern New Jersey, and 
Massachusetts northward. 
The nest is of twigs, thin strips of bark, weed stalk, and 
lined with grass and moss. It is rather shallow, and is placed 
usually on a branch of an evergreen tree at some distance from 
the trunk, at a considerable height from the ground. The eggs, 
numbering from 3 to 4, and rarely 5, are creamy white, spotted, 
chiefly at the larger end, with reddish brown and dull lilac. 
Size—.82 x .62. 
The breeding season commences late in May or early in June, 
according to locality. 
461. Wood Pewee: Contopus virens (Linn.) 
Aduit—Upper parts dark olive brown, more or less tinged with 
dull green ; wings dull brown with two white bars ; under 
parts pale gray, slightly tinged with yellow. Length—6.50. 
Breeding Range—Throughout the Eastern States. 
The nest is a compact structure, with a thin floor and fairly 
thick low sides. It is composed of fine grass, moss, and strips 
of bark, with a coating of lichen fastened on the outside with fine 
webs, and is saddled on a branch or sometimes placed in a fork 
at from ten to fifty feet from the ground. Usually a large tree is 
chosen, and the nest is often placed near the extremity of a 
branch. 3 to 4 eggs are laid ; they are white or pale buff, with 
spots of various shades of brown and lilac forming a wreath 
about the larger end. Size—.7o x .54. See Fig. 1, Plate D. 
These little flycatchers, who hide their nests so carefully on 
the branch of a tree, are found chiefly in the woods. Their pe- 
culiarly plaintive note sounds as though they were always 
brooding over some great sorrow, and yet there is no reason for 
supposing them less happy than others of the feathered tribes. 
Next to the phcebe, they are probably the tamest of the fly- 
catchers. I have known one to build her nest within three feet 
of a window near which people frequently sat during many 
hours of the day, but she never seemed to object to the close 
scrutiny to which she was frequently subjected. 
The breeding season begins from the latter part of May to 
the middle of June, according to locality. 
173 
