S The Haivkeye O. and O. 



The Vireo is one of my especial favorites among our feather- 

 ed friends. Trim, slender and graceful, of modest colors, never 

 forcing itself on our notice as is the ease with some of our more 

 brilliant birds, always keeping up its cheerful strain from the 

 early dawn, the sultry noon and through the dusky eve till the 

 stars shine on its sleeping form as it reposes in its delicate nesr, 

 keeping warm its eggs in which are wrapped up all its hopes. 

 This bird has always possessed a peculiar attraction for me. 



The nest matches the bird. Like those of all the Vireos it is a 

 pensile cup in the forks of a horizontal branch. It is nearer the 

 cup shape than almost any nest built in this locality. The foun- 

 dation of the nest is usually the line, dry inner bark of grape- 

 vines, a favorite substance with many birds. On the outside it 

 is covered with shreds of a wasp's nest, and lined with tine bits 

 of hay. The above is a description of a nest now before me. 

 This particular nest was rather high for this species, being about 

 thirty feet from the ground, while the usual distance is half that. 

 It was on the end of such a slender limb that no one could have 

 climbed to it, but I secured the empty nest by cutting the limb 

 on which it was hung, with a rifle. 



The eggs are pure white with a few dark brown spots, the 

 marking thickest at the larger end. They are usually four in 

 number and measure .80x.60. 



The large family Mniot/dtidae next comes under consider- 

 ation. The beautiful Maryland Yellow-throat is the one which 

 I have had the most and best chances to study. It may seem 

 strange to pass over such a large and important family so hasti- 

 ly, but I am not going to have the leisure I hoped to have to 

 finish these sketches and hope my readers will pardon me for 

 qeing so cursory. 



{To be continued.) 



