262 BIRDS OF ONTARIO. 



at least on the belly. Very young birds have some feathers edged with 

 rusty, particularly on the edges of the wing and tail feathers. Length, 6J-7 ; 

 wing and tail, 3-3J. 



Hab.— Eastern North America, from the British Provinces south to Eastern 

 Mexico and Cuba, wintering from the South Atlantic and Gulf States south- 

 ward. 



Nest, under bridges or projection about outhouses. When away from 

 human habitation it is often found among the roots of an upturned tree or 

 in a hollow tree, composed of vegetable material mixed with mud and frescoed 

 with moss. 



Eggs, four or five, usually pure white, sometimes faintly spotted. 



This is one of the earliest harbingers of spring, and its quick, 

 querulous notes are hailed with joy as a prelude to the grand concert> 

 of bird music w^hich is soon to follow. 



Early in April, the male Pee-wee appears in his former haunts, 

 and is soon joined by his mate. They are partial to the society of 

 man, and their habits, aa shown in their nestings, have been some- 

 what changed by this taste. The original; typical nest of the Pee- 

 wee, we are told, was placed on a ledge under a projecting rock, 

 over which water trickled, the nest itself often being damp with the 

 spray. We still see one, occasionally, in such a position, but more 

 frequently it is placed on the beams of a bridge, beneath the eaves 

 of a deserted house, or under a verandah or the projection of an out- 

 house. They raise two broods in the season, and retire to the south 

 in September. 



They are generally distributed throughout Ontario, but are most 

 common in the south. A few have made their way to Manitoba, 

 where they have been seen near ^^'innipeg and elsewhere. They are 

 strongly attached to a chosen locality, and will return year after 

 year to repair their old nest, or entirely rebuild it in the same spot 

 should the old fabric be removed. They are often imposed upon by 

 the Cow-bird, and accept the situation without remonstrance. 



Genus CONTOPUS Cabanis. 

 CONTOPUS BOREALIS (Swains.). 



188. Olive-sided Flycatcher. (459) 



Dusky olivaceous-brown, usually darker on the crown, where the feathers 

 have black centres, and paler on the sides ; chin, throat, belly, crissum and 

 middle line of the breast, white, more or less tinged with yellowish ; wings and 

 tail, blackish, immarked, excepting inconspicuous grayish-broAvn tips of the 



