106 NORTH AMERICAN WARBLERS. 



second week in May, and the average date of arrival during five years 

 at Columbia Falls, Mont., is May 20, the earliest being May 18, 1895. 

 The first migrants were noted at Red Deer, Alberta, May 27, 1892, and 

 May 29, 1893, and at Edmonton, Alberta, May 15, 1897. 



676. Seiurus motacilla (Vieill. ). Louisiana Water-Thrush. 



Breeding range. — The Louisiana water-thrush breeds throughout its 

 range in the United States, and is one of the characteristic species of 

 the Carolinian life zone, in which it nests just to the northern limit in 

 southern New England, southern Ontario, southern Michigan, and 

 southern Minnesota. Thus the breeding ranges of S. noveboracensh 

 and 8. motacilla are largely separated by the AUeghenian life zone. 



Winter range. — The winter range of this species is much the same 

 as that of the last, except that it extends somewhat more to the west. 

 The bird exhibits the rather rare habit of a migration from the Mis- 

 sissippi Valley to the western coast of Mexico — that is, a distinctly 

 southwestern migration through Mexico. Ranging only to eastern 

 Nebraska, eastern Kansas, and quite sparingly to eastern Texas, it yet 

 was found by the parties of the Biological Survey in Durango and 

 Guerrero, and it has been reported as not rare at Mazatlan and Colima. 

 A few individuals winter from the coast to an altitude of 3,500 feet as 

 far north as Chacala, Durango, and Monterey, Nuevo Leon. 



The Louisiana water-thrush is found in winter throughout Guate- 

 mala from the Pacific coast to 5,000 feet and in migration a thousand 

 feet higher. It is rare or wanting in Campeche and Yucatan, and 

 probably occurs there only in migration. The ranges of the two water- 

 thrushes in Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, and Panama are much 

 the same, but m.otacilla is much less common than noveboracends. 

 The known range of motacilla was extended to the mainland of South 

 America by the taking of a specimen during the winter of 1897-98 

 on the coast of Santa Marta, Colombia," and another, on November 8, 

 1898, in the same vicinity at Bonda.* 



The species is not common in the West Indies, and is somewhat 

 restricted in its range as compared with the rest of the genus. It 

 occurs in Cuba, Haiti, Porto Rico, Jamaica, Grand Cayman, Old 

 Providence, the northern Bahamas, New Providence, Berry, and 

 Bimini Islands. It is recorded from Antigua of the Lesser Antilles, 

 but not from anj^ of the neighboring islands. 



Spring migration. — Migration records of the Louisiana water- 

 thrush are practically wanting for Florida and the Gulf coast. There 

 is, however, a most excellent set of records from North Carolina, which 

 show very uniform times of arrival without regard to altitude. The 

 following table gives dates of earliest arrival in spi'ing at Raleigh, 



aBanga, Proc. Biol. See. Wash., XII, p. 143, 1898. 



''Allen, Bull. Am. Mus. Nat. Iliat.. XIII, p. 177, 1900; Auk, XVII, p. 366, 1900. 



