Breeding of the Cerulean Warbler {Dendroica can-idea) in Niagara 

 County, New York.— On May 30. 1S88, while passing through a large wood, 

 f noticed a nest on a fork of a horizontal limb of a small basswood tree, 

 which I took to be the nest of the Least Flycatcher {Emfidonax minimus) . 

 I also saw a pair of birds in a large tree, near the one containing the nest, 

 but I was unable to identify them. On June 8 I found the bird on the nest, 

 and on its leaving I shot it and was surprised to find that it was a female 

 Dendroica ccerulea. The nest contained three eggs when secured, but one 

 or two fell from the nest when the bird left it. Incubation was nearly com- 

 plete, and it was with diHiculty that I succeeded in saving two good speci- 

 mens' and the broken shell of the third. I did not succeed in securing the 

 male, but an hour before in another piece of woods half a mile distant I 

 liad shot by mistake another male of this species, which was also a surprise, 

 as I had found but two of this species during ten years' collecting in this 

 County, and they were both male birds, taken May to, 1S82, and May 11, 

 18S3, and not over ten rods apart. I had come to the conclusion that they 

 were to be found here only during migration, and rarely then. On 

 leaving the woods after securing this nest, we passed into an old pasture 

 lotorclearingin which were a few small trees left standing, and while 

 digging out a set of four eggs of the Yellow-bellied Sapsucker {Sphyra- 

 ficus varius) I noticed another pair of Z*. ccerulea, and on watching them 

 found they were building a nest in a small basswood, also on the fork of 

 a horizontal limb, about twenty feet from the ground and eight feet out 

 from the trunk. I am so particular in describing the position of these 

 nests, as in ' North American Birds,' Baird, Brewer and Ridgway, Vol. I. 

 p. 236, Audubon is quoted as finding one " placed in the forks of a low 

 tree or bush, partly pensile, projecting a little above the twigs to which it 

 is attached, and extending below them nearly two inches," while these are 

 placed on the top of the limb, which is from one half to three quarters of 

 an inch in diameter, and the nest does not extend below the centre. The 

 dimensions of the nest are outside two and a half inches across by two 

 inches deep, inside one and seven eighths by one and a quarter inches. 



Audubon is also quoted as saying, " The eggs are five in number, of a 

 pure white with a few reddish spots about the larger end," while these 

 are bluish white with a wreath of reddish brown and lilac spots about the 

 larger end, and small brown dots over the whole egg. The dimensions 

 of the two saved are .70 X .52 and .71 X .52 inches. I sent the male and 

 female D. ccanilea to Dr. A. K. Fisher, of Washington. On June 23 I 

 secured the second nest and eggs, also the female, but did not succeed in 

 finding the male. The nest contained three eggs, also one egg of the 

 Cowbird. These eggs are not as large as the first, measuring only 

 .64 X .50, .63 X .49, .64 X .50 inches. The general color is the same, but 

 the wreath about the large end is not as distinct. The nests are made of 

 the fibre of the thistle and sparingly covered with lichens, and lined with a 

 brown hair-like substance that I do not know the name of. On June 30 I 

 found another nest in a piece of woods about one mile from where I took 

 the others, but it was too high to be secured, and from the action of the 

 female I concluded it contained young. On July 4 I secured three adult 

 birds, one male and two females, also three young; all but one female 

 were taken within twenty rods of where I secured the two nests and eggs. 

 One female and two young were sent to Dr. A. K. Fisher, and one male 

 and female and one young were sent to the Smithsonian Institution. 

 July 7 I visited the same place and saw another brood of three young 

 whicli seemed to be able to fly as well as the adults, although the old 

 birds were feeding them ; I did not try to secure any of these. July 14 I 

 could not find one of this species at the same place. July 21 I found a late 

 brood, but secured only the adult female and one young which I sent to 

 tlie American Museum of Natural History, New York City, at the request 

 of Mr. J. A. Allen. All the young of this species taken resemble the adult 

 female with the exception that they have yellowish downy feathers on the 

 breast and edge of wing. 



On July 28 I again visited the same place, but did not see a Blue War 

 bier and came to the conclusion that they had moved southward. 



In 'North American Birds ' Dr. Brewer says that he has been informed 

 that this species " abounds and breeds in the vicinity of Niagara Falls," 

 although he does not say that any nests or eggs %yere secured, and as he 

 also says " little is known of its breeding habits," I have here been more 

 explicit in regard to my observations than I otherwise should have been. — 

 J. L. Davison, Lockporf, Niagara County, N. T. 



Auk, V, Oct.. 1888. p. *f30-3/^ 



