The Yellowthroats 



spring, but darker and browner above, the brown intensified on crown, and nearly 

 obliterating the white fillet; the black of forehead veiled by buffy or brownish tips. Im- 

 mature male: Like adult male in autumn, but pileum entirely brown; the white fillet 

 wanting, and the black facial mask only faintly outlined under brown skirtings; the 

 yellow of breast less extended posteriorly, and more or less clouded by an orange-buff 

 element. Adult female in spring and summer: Subsimilar to adult male, but without 

 facial mask or white fillet; head above and on sides brownish olive, most intense on 

 crown, lightening vaguely about eyes; the yellow of underparts much restricted and 

 duller, clearest on throat and in pectoral irruptions, chest and under tail-coverts in- 

 clining to dull orange (old gold) ; breast buffy or creamy (colonial buff to naples yellow). 

 Adult female in autumn: Duller; the yellow element of underparts almost entirely 

 subdued by olive-gray; throat and belly cream-buff. Immature female: Much like 

 adult female in autumn, but showing a little more yellow, especially on under tail- 

 coverts. Young birds are olive-brown above and olive-buffy below, clearing toward 

 warbler green on wing-edgings and on tail, and lightening toward creamy on belly. 

 Length of adults (female a little smaller) about 127 (5.00). Av. of 7 adult males from 

 Humboldt County, Nevada (M. V. Z. colls.): wing 55.8 (2.20); tail 53 (2.09); bill 

 10.8 (.43) ; tarsus 20.4 (.80). 



Recognition Marks. — Warbler size; black mask and white fillet of male dis- 

 tinctive. The female is a much more difficult bird to recognize — perhaps best known 

 by peculiar sordid olive-brownish-yellow shade of underparts. The pale orbital area 

 also assists, but one must live with these birds to know them infallibly. 



Nesting. — Nest: Of coarse coiled grasses, or, more rarely, leaves of Typha 

 angustifolia; lined with fine grasses or horsehair; placed at moderate heights in cattails, 

 tules, weeds, or grass-clumps, or, more rarely, in bushes or even trees. Eggs: 3 or 4, 

 rarely 5; white, marked with a few bold strokes or scrawls of blackish, and dotted and 

 spotted, sparingly, chiefly about the larger end, with deep vinaceous gray. Av. size, 

 16.8 x 13 (.66 x .51). Season: May-June; one brood. 



Range of Geothlypis trichas. — North America, south in winter to Central America 

 and the West Indies. 



Range of G. t. occidentalis. — Western North America west of the Great Plains, 

 breeding from southeastern Alaska east to southern Saskatchewan, south to south 

 central California and western Texas; south in winter to Lower California and Mexico. 



Distribution in California. — Common migrant throughout the State; remains 

 to breed in the vicinity of fresh-water marshes (occurring below the Boreal zone) from 

 western central California (except the San Francisco Bay region) and the Death 

 Valley region north to the Oregon line. Status in winter undetermined, but possibly 

 the number of Yellowthroats found in California at that season increases. 



Authorities. — Gambel (Trichas marylandica), Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 

 vol. iii., 1847, p. 155 (California; subsp. uncertain); Johnson, Condor, vol. vi., 1904, 

 p. 129 (Clear Lake; habits; desc. nests and eggs) ; Beal, U. S. Dept. Agric, Biol. Surv. 

 Bull., no. 30, 1907, p. 49 (food); Swarth, Univ. Calif. Pub. Zool., vol. x., 1912, p. 71 

 (crit. ; occurrence in California). 



No. 98b Tule Yellowthroat 



A. O. U. No. 68 ia, part. Geothlypis trichas scirpicola Grinnell. 



Description. — Like G. t. occidentalis, but somewhat darker and richer colora- 

 tion, especially in the yellows, which incline toward orange; also slightly larger (?) 

 throughout. 



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