276 WILSON'S WARBLER 



"In actions, call-notes and song, this is a decidedly individual 

 little bird. Like the Canada, it is both a gleaner and a darting fly- 

 catcher, but it has a more perky restlessness of manner than the Can- 

 ada. It twitches its tail up and down, not methodically and almost 

 ■uninterruptedly, like the Palm Warbler, but with spasmodic irregu- 

 larity. Now the tail will go sharply flip-flip-flipping for many seconds 

 together, and again it will be perfectly still for a longer time. Add to 

 this Warbler's individual manners and sufficiently peculiar notes, his 

 very rich yellow and yellow-green coloration, relieved by a round, 

 glossy, blue-black crown-spot (of erectile feathers) as the sole mark- 

 ing, and you have a bird easily identified. The females usually and 

 the young always lack the distinguishing crown-cap; but their man- 

 ners betray them." 



In Maine, Morrell 2 says, "Wilson's Warbler may safely be classed 

 as one of the rarest Warblers which breed regularly in the State. It 

 is nowhere common, even as a migrant, arriving during the second 

 week in May with the main army of migrating Warblers. I always see 

 it singly or in pairs, never in flocks, at this time. They are birds of 

 the bush, never going into large woods as do the Black-throated Green 

 and Blackburnian Warblers, but spend the summer in knolly, bush- 

 grown pastures bordering young growths." 



Song. — "The singing as a rule is done from a perch, between 

 sallies into the air, but sometimes it is accomplished during one of the 

 little darting flights. It is highly changeable, in everything but tone- 

 quality. Though only just loud enough, at its best, to give the bird 

 rank among full-voiced Warblers, it has much of the ringing clarity 

 of the Canada's and Hooded's songs. The commonest form of it, a 

 rapid, bubbled warble, of two nearly equal parts, the second lower- 

 toned and sometimes diminuendo, has always reminded me of a 

 Northern Water-Thrush song. But it falls short of that utterance in 

 vivid 'suddenness.' It is also somewhat like the Nashville's songs, par- 

 ticularly the less common, softer one. It is fully as clear-toned, but 

 far less loud, and more hurriedly delivered. Sometimes the Wilson's 

 sings only half his song, — using either of the two parts, — and the 

 second part thus used is occasionally prolonged into a full-length 

 song. Another regular variation is an inversion of the common two- 

 fold utterance. Again, the complete song is sometimes uttered in a 

 very soft undertone — fairly whispered. But all "these variations — all 

 I have yet heard — seem to be based on one main song. Of call-notes, 

 the bird has at least two perfectly distinct kinds, both fairly constant. 

 One is a very fine, quick lisp, and the other an unusually low-toned and 



