ON THE RELATIONSHIP OF HELMINTHOPHA GA 

 L E UCOBR ONCHIALIS , BREWSTER, AND HEL- 

 MINTHOPHAGA LA WRENCEI, HERRICK; WITH 

 SOME CONJECTURES RESPECTING CERTAIN OTH- 

 ER NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS. 



BY WILLIAM BREWSTER. 



Since my original description of the White-throated Warbler 

 ( HcJ mint hop kag-a leucobronckialis) appeared, specimens have 

 slowlv multiplied until, including the two announced by Dr. 

 Fisher in the present number of the Bulletin,* there are now no 

 less than twelve known examples. Until recently there has been 

 no apparent reason for doubting the validity of the species, which 

 has been generally accepted, and even heartily endorsed by sev- 

 eral prominent ornithologists. But not long since Dr. Edgar A. 

 Mearns and Mr. Eugene P. Bicknell sent me some puz/Iing 

 specimens which, at the time, I was obliged to consider aberrant 

 individuals of II. prmis and //. chrysoptera, but which never- 

 theless raised certain suspicions aflecting H. leucohronchialis and 

 H. lawrencei. These suspicions are now confirmed by the 

 examination of a fine series, belonging to Dr. A. K. Fisher, 

 which throws a flood of light on the whole subject. I am in- 

 debted to Dr. Fisher's kindness for permission to make use of this 

 material in the present investigation. 



l^efore entering into the details of the evidence before me it 

 may be well to emphasize some of the prominent characters 

 which respectively distinguish H. pin?is^ H. chrysoptera, II. 

 leucohronchialis^ and H. laturencei. 



[* See beyond, under " General Notes."— EDI).] 



Brewster oit Ilelminthophaga leucobronckialis. 219 



//. pi nils. Above j-ellowisb-olive ; wing-bands white ; lores and post- 

 ocular spot black ; cbeeks. throat, and under parts generally, rich yellow. 



//. r/iiysoffera. Above bUiish-ash ; wing-bands yellow ; throat, with a 

 broad head-stripe, embracing the lores, cheeks, and auriculars, black 

 (ashy in the female). Under parts white tinged with ashj' on the sides. 



//. le:u-obro)ichi<ilh. Upper surface, including wing-bars, as in chry- 

 sopicrti. bul with the back and wings tinged with olive-green ; head-stripe 

 restricted as in pii/KS; throat, cheeks, and under parts silky-white, unlike 

 eithei- ■piiiiis or rhiysopiera; breast more or less strongly washed with 

 yellow. 



//. lavjrencei. Throat and head-stripes black, the latter embracing the 

 cheeks and auriculars, as in ckrysoptera; wing-bands white, and general 

 coloring yellow or olive-green, as in piiiiis. 



From the above summary it will appear that neither leucohron- 

 chialis nor lawreiicci possesses any important original charac- 

 ters. The former borrows its ashy back and yellow wing-bars from 

 citrysoptera ; its restricted eye-stripe from pi.nus ; — while the dif- 

 ferential value of its white throat and under parts is materially 

 atl'ected by the usual presence of more or less yellow on the breast. 

 Lawrencei has aljsolutely no peculiar markings or coloration ; it 

 simply unites tlie black throat and broad head-stripes of ckrysop- 

 tera with the \vhite ^virlg-bands and general coloring of pinus. 

 In either case there is simply a peculiar comltination of borrowed 

 characters. Let us see how constant these combinations are. 



No. 1,208 (Dr. Fisher's collection,?.? Sing Sing, New York, 

 July 24, 1881) is in every way similar to the type of leticohron- 

 chialis save that the lf)res ai-e more broadly black and the black 

 of the post-ocular spot sjjreads backward and downward, embrac- 

 ing nearly the whole of the aiu'icular region. 



No. 1,335 (I^''- Fisher's collection, (J , Sing Sing, August 3, 

 iSSi) dillers from the t)'pc of leucobronckialis only in having a 

 broad patch of pale yellow on the breast. A large proportion of 

 the specimens previously reported have also exhibited this same 

 peculiarity. 



No. 605 (Dr. Fisher's collection, ^ , Sing Sing, August 24, 

 1879) exhibits a faint wash of lemon-yellow on the throat, 

 whil.c a Isroad space across the breast is deep gamboge-yellow, 

 and the wing-bands are ptire white. 



No. 3,630 (author's collection, o ? adult, Nyack, New Jersey, 

 May, 1878 ; presented by Eugene P. ]3icknell) has the chin 

 decidedly yellow ; the throat, cheeks, and a small space on the 



