^LOGIST [Vol. 11-No. 8 



DENDROICA BLCKBURNL/E. 



Bliickburnian Warbler. 

 This beautiful little Warbler arrived in Monroe 

 county on April 22d, that being the date of first 

 observation ; on the follovcing day they vpere seen 

 quite commonly. These birds were noticed only 

 along the edges of the open fields, some distance 

 back from the mountains, and in company 

 with Ohestnut-sided and Yellow Warblers. Up 

 to May 3d, I saw them only in such places, when 

 on that date I observed a single one in the mixed 

 growth of oak and chestnut on the mountain 

 sides. During the first week in May they were 

 very common, but about May 10th they dimin- 

 ished in numbers, and by the 15th not one could 

 be found in an entire day's tramp. On the 18th 

 a severe rain storm accompanied l)y a cold north- 

 east wind occurred, and on the following morn- 

 ing a few were seen gleaning insects in the devel- 

 oping foliage of the water oaks {Quereus aquatiea) 

 and a number were seen in the oak forests on the 

 mountains, but by night they had disappeared 

 and none were seen the next day. An ascent of 

 Smoky Mountain, in Blount county, on May 25th, 

 discovered to mc this handsome Warbler in full 

 numbers. They were principally met with at 

 a,bout 3,000 feet altitude on the dividing line be- 

 t\Yeen the spruce {Abies nigra) and the deciduous 



trees, and which gave an equality of the two va- 

 rieties. Proceeding still further up, I found a 

 few birds of this species, but the majority seemed 

 to prefer an admixture of the hard wood growth. 

 At Roane county, in the Walden ridge, this 

 Warbler was found to select the spruce growth 

 at a higher altitude than on Great Smoky Moun- 

 tain ; perhaps the southern slope of Waldon ne- 

 cessitated a higher rise to equal the same temper- 

 ature of the northern exposure of the Great 

 Smoky chain. The movements of the Black- 

 burnian Warbler define quite plainly the faunal 

 lines of this country. The three fauna; so well 

 known to New England or Eastern Korth Amer- 

 ica, the Canadian, Alleghanian and Carolinian, 

 give to this region all of their distinctive features; 

 the extreme mountain heights representing the 

 Canadian, the Alleghanian from about 4,000 feet 

 altitude down to the Carolinian, which meets it 

 at about 2,000 feet. Mr. Brewster gives altitudes 

 at about 500 feet higher in each instance, in his 

 observations in North Carolina, but the localities 

 must vary as the figures given above arc correct 

 for this region, as great care was taken in de- 

 termining the faunal lines. 



Several readings of the thermometer were 

 taken at various heights. On May 21st, in the 

 valley, the mean temperature was 48°. May 22d, 

 at about 2,500 feet, the mean was recorded at 42°, 

 and at 4,000 feet the mean was 38°. Less varia- 

 tion was noted at the latter height, the mercury 

 not rising higher than 44°, while in the valley 

 60° and 36° were the extremes on May 21st. The 

 especial value of the above thermosatic notes in 

 determining the relative temperature comes from 

 the fact that in the valley the thermometer was 

 the same on all three days, viz., 60° as a mean 

 record. I found the Blackburnian Warbler a 

 true type of the Canadian fauna, hence the above 

 notes in connection with it. The Blackburnian 

 Warbler despite the fact of keeping in nearly 

 similar surroundings, breeds earlier than those of 

 same species which penetrate farther north. A 

 nest was found by my cousin, who accompanied 

 me, on May 31st. It was placed on the horizon- 

 tal limb of a fir {Abies fraseri) and not so compact 

 as one found by Mr. F. H. Carpenter at Mount 

 Bigolow, Maine. It was almost as flimsy as that 

 of the Chestnut-sided Warbler, and contained 

 only one egg. The female sat upon the edge of 

 the nest and would not leave it until the out- 

 stretched hand was within a few inches. Upon 

 leaving it undisturbed she immediately resumed 

 her former position and in a few moments the 

 male brought a larger specimen of Ephemericlx, 

 which they both were obliged to industriously 

 visect in order to swallow. 



