Prothonotary Warbler in Western 

 ' Illinois. 



BY OTHO C. I'OLING, QUINCY, ILL. 



The Golden Swamp Warbler, (Protonotaria 

 citrea) is perhaps the most abundant bird in 



' the Bottom Lands on either side of the Mississ- 

 ippi for about twenty miles north of Quiney in 

 j Illinois, while in Missouri it is most plentiful 

 I just across the river. It not only frequents the 

 dense and heavily timbered tracts but is also 

 fouQd in more open places and along the stag- 

 nant sloughs and ponds where an occasional 



I clump of birch or willows affords shade and a 



I nesting place. By the first week in May the 

 birds are here in abundance, when pairing is 



I soon begun and throughout the month of May 

 they have a peculiar little song uttered at all 

 times, while the birds may be seen flitting rap- 

 idly across the water or perched among the 

 willow tops. The song of this bird may be 

 compared with that of the Yellowbird, though 

 much louder and more distinctly uttered. 



Soon after their arrival from the south and 

 when the mating is in some measure settled 

 they select as a nesting site the decayed cavity 

 of some stump or tree leaning over the water, 

 or in deep moist woods. The place selected may 

 be at some distance from any body of water. 



' I have found the nest in holes of piei's support- 

 ing bridges and within a few inches of the 

 water. In one instance I remember finding a 

 nest with eggs just on the point of being sub- 

 merged, while the parent bird flitting to and 

 fro showed much distress at their peculiar situ- 

 ation. 



The Prothonotary Warbler is a strikingly 

 handsome bird and in the richness of color it 

 has few rivals; when once seen in Its native 

 I surroundings it is not soon forgotten. The 



Oct. 1887.] Am 00 



same may be said of its nest, which is quite as 

 peculiar and interesting in construction and 

 material as in the situation. It consists chiefly 

 in common green moss which remains fresh 

 until after the young have left. The lining is 

 mostly of hair and fine grass. Some nests 

 have nothing but the moss which is loosely 

 thrown in until the cavity is filled to a proper 

 height. I have removed from a single cavity 

 upwards of a quart of moss, besides the grass ' 

 and other substances. 



In most cases the hole in which the nest is 

 placed is badly broken out and decayed and the 

 top of the nest is seldom more than six inches 

 below the entrance, while it is often filled to 

 the top. My first record for 1887 was a nest 

 with six beautiful eggs, placed in the small 

 cavity of a horizontal willow limb reaching far 

 out over the water ; the limb being slender and 

 the entrance on the under side there was but 

 little room for any nest and the eggs were 

 arranged on a slight layer of hair and grass, 

 back of which for at least a foot the cavity was 

 filled w-ith moss. This nest, could it have been 

 preserved in its original shape, would present a 

 somewhat singular appearance. 



The eggs of this Warbler while showing 

 some variation in markings are usually of a 

 rounded oval shape of nearly equal size at the 

 ends, some being nearly spherical, while others 

 are much elongated. Out of a large number of 

 eggs collected during the past season, the typi- 

 cal set shows measurements as follows: .73 x 

 .55; .73X.52; .73x.52; .72 x. 52 and .72 x .50. 



The usual number of eggs laid is six, some- 

 times flve^n^b^t^y^^e^g^^ p,e.-y6/| 



331. Prothonotary Warbler. Protonotaria citr 

 Jencks. Ibid., VI, p. 66. 



692. The Prot/ionotary Warbler. By D. E. Lantz. Ibid., pp. 19, 20. 

 — Its ne.sting habits at Manhattan, Kan. Q. ^ O.Voi.VIII 



