348 THE BIRDS 
SUBFAMILY POLIOPTILINAE.—GNAT- 
CATCHERS. 
GENUS POLIOPTILA. 
[751]. Poloptila cerulea cerulea (Linneus). Blue- 
gray Gnatcatcher. 
Raner.—Southeastern United States. Breeds in 
Austroriparian and Carolinian zones from eastern 
Nebraska and southern parts of Wisconsin, Michigan, and 
Ontario, and southwestern Pennsylvania, Maryland, and 
southern New Jersey south to southern Texas and central 
Florida; winters from southern Texas, Gulf States, and 
northern Florida to the Bahamas and Cuba, and through 
eastern Mexico to Yucatan and Guatemala; casual north- 
ward to southeastern Minnesota, New England, and New 
York. 
A common breeding bird below 1,800 feet alti- 
tude throughout the whole area. Nest building com- 
mences about April 20th if the weather be fair, 
both birds procuring material; from seven to ten 
days being taken to complete a nest. Many nests are 
destroyed by heavy wind storms which generally occur 
during this period, particularly those built on the top of 
horizontal limbs. Cypress and post oak trees seem to be 
their favorites in this section, although occasionally a pine 
is resorted to. An unusual nesting location was in a young 
sapling pine about three and a half inches in diameter, 
twenty feet from the ground, the nest being fastened to the 
side of the tree, with only a short stub a half inch long on 
the under side. Only one brood is reared during the 
