Parus hudsonicus. Hudsonian Chickadee.— It is as easy to 

 distinguish this bird by its notes from the famihar Black-capped 

 Chickadee, as by its plumage. There are, however, very few 

 descriptions in the books of these characteristic notes, and I can 

 find no account of a song. Both Chickadees have a variety of 

 faint notes that are very much alike, but there is one characteristic 

 in most of the notes of the Hudsonian which at once distinguishes 

 it from the Black-cap, and that is the 2 quality, delivered in a lower 

 pitch. In a word, the Hudsonian uses a while the Black-cap uses 

 s or d. The former says fst zee-zee or less' often pst zee-zee-zee, 

 while the latter repeats more frequently, and rattles off, psik a dee- 

 dee-dee-dee-dee, and his notes are higher pitched. 



Several times in different places I was treated to a pleasant little 

 warble from the Hudsonian Chickadee, which appeared to my 

 companion and myself to easily merit the name of song. It was a 

 low, bubbling, warbling song, which I vainly attempted to describe 

 in my notes. It began with a fstt or tsee, followed by a sweet but 

 short warble. This song, if song it be, is quite different from the 

 irregular rolling notes that the Black-cap occasionally emits, which 

 cannot be considered a song. In one case I noted that the song was 

 emitted by an adult. I heard the song several times from one bird 

 at Englishtown, several times from another at Indian Brook, once 

 at Skir Dhu, and once at North Ingonish. It is evident therefore 

 that it was not the idiosyncracy of one bird. While it would seem 

 strange that the Hudsonian Chickadee should not have a song, it 

 is stranger still that those who are familiar with the bird at all sea- 

 sons should not have heard it, if it exists. As far as I know the 

 only allusion to a song in this species is by Mr. Horace W. Wright 



in the Auk, Vol. XXII, 1905, p. 87, in which he refers to a Hud- 

 sonian Chickadee seen at Ipswich, Mass., on November 12, 1904, 

 as follows: "[he] was very finely seen while he gave a sweet war- 

 bling song." Of another bird, seen on November 25, he says: 

 "The Belmont bird was also well seen and gave a few notes of the 



280. Parus hudsonicus. Hudsonian Chickadee. — One record, 

 Richmond Hill (13 miles north of Toronto), about 1890. 



warbling song." 



A-a^, XXIU, Apr.. 190Q, p ■ 17^-11% 



