I50 



Bird Studies. 



tail are white. The sides and flanks are brownish, washed with gray. There 

 are two white wing bars, and the outer tail feathers have a white patch near 

 their ends. The female is similar to the male but paler, and immature birds 

 have the upper parts suffused with greenish yellow, the yellow of the lower 

 parts is paler and the throat often grayish white. 



The nest is built of tufts of the moss and lichens that hang from the 

 limbs of trees, or in bunches of dead leaves and driftwood left in lower 

 branches by some passing freshet. The eggs are white, speckled particularly 

 at the larger end with reddish brown. They vary, from three to five in 

 number, and are rather more than three fifths of an inch long, and less than 

 half an inch wide. 



The Parula has many of the characteristic actions of a Titmouse, and is 

 especially active, now hanging head down from the end of some twig, now 

 fluttering at its extremity, busy always in pursuit of its insect prey. 



This is the form of Parula Warbler breeding in the region from the 



District of Columbia southward, on the coast, and in the interior from 



Southern Illinois southward. I n the Gulf States it ranges 



compsothiypis american'a ^nd brecds east of Texas. It is a little smaller than its 



(Lmn.). northern prototype. The adult . male has more yellow 



below and less black or dusky in front of the eye. The orange brown color 



band on the breast is narrower, and in many individuals obscure or wanting. 



The chest is light brown without distinct markings. 



In habits and breeding economy the birds are essentially similar. 



The Warblers that we have so far met with are birds that have bills 



rather like those of thrushes. The group, of which the Tennessee Warbler 



is fairly representative, have acute conical bills, more like 



Warbler those of the orioles. The Warblers with such bills natu- 



Heiminthophiia peregrina rally form themselvcs into two groups, one olive and the 



other parti-colored. Three birds, the Tennessee Warbler, 



the Orange-crowned Warbler, and the Nashville Warbler, form the olive 



group. The parti-colored group contains the Golden-winged, Lawrence's, 



Brewster's, the Blue-winged Yellow, and Bachman's Warblers. 



The Tennessee Warbler is about five inches long and is bright olive 



