WARBLERS 



(639) Helmitheros vermiv= 



orUS (Gmrl.) (Gr.. a bug. to 

 hunL; Lat., worm eating). 



W R JI - EATIXG ^^'ARBLER. 



Bill stout and high at the base; long 

 and acutely pointed. Ads. — Plum- 

 age as shown. A black line through 

 the eye and one on either side of 

 the orange-brown crown; upper parts 

 olive-grcenish with no markings on 

 wings or tail; below a dull, buiiy- 

 white, lightest on the throat. Im- 

 mature birds are bro-\^'ner above but 

 have the distinctive markings on the 

 head. L., 5.50; W., 2.80; T., 2.10. 

 Ncsl — Of leaves, rootlets and strips 

 of bark; on the ground; eggs white, 

 spotted chiefly about the large end 

 with brown, .70 x .55. 



Range — Breeds from Conn., Pa., 

 northern 111. and la. south to Va. 



exclusively in such places during the nesting season. In the 

 Mississippi Valley they range locally as far north as Missouri 

 and on the Atlantic coast to the Dismal Swamp in Virginia. 

 The centre of their abundance is apparently in canes in 

 swamps of South Carolina and Georgia. They are at most 

 times rather silent but the male has an excellent song that he 

 utters when the mood coines upon him. It is a loud, ringing 

 melody quite similar to that of the common Water-Thrush. 



Their nests, which are almost always in canes over or close 

 to water, are quite bulky affairs, made of various leaves 

 with the stems pointing upward, and lined with pine needles 

 and moss. The eggs are pure white and unmarked, which is 

 quite unusual for members of this family. 



The sexes of this species are alike in plumage as are also 

 those of WORM-EATING WARBLERS, which species is 

 quite abundant in eastern United States as far north as 

 Connecticut and Nebraska. These warblers are easily rec- 

 ognized when seen by the prominent striping of the crown in 



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