314 
Field Marks. No reliable field marks covering the whole family can be given. How- 
ever, after a little experience with them their small size, bright colours, and sprightly 
actions are easily recognized. They are most likely to be confused with the Vireos, but see 
bill, Figure 277. 
Nesting. The nesting habits of the family are various; some build in trees, near the 
O und or well up towards the taller tops, others on the ground or in grass, and some in 
es in dead stubs. 
Distribution. Most of the Warblers breed in the northern spruce woods beyond the 
limits of general settlement. Some nest in the more cultivated sections and a few in our 
most southern sections. All are migratory and, according to species, spend the winter 
from northern United States south to the Amazon. 
The American Wood Warblers constitute a large family peculiar to 
the Americas. In fact they divide the honours in point of number with 
the Sparrows. The Warblers are the delight of amateur bird-observers. 
So small that few but the enthusiast ever see them, but so numerous and 
brilliantly coloured that their discovery opens up a new world of interest 
to the novice. The sexes are usually dissimilar ana there is considerable 
seasonal change in plumage. This, multiplied by the large numbers of 
species, makes the task of identifying all of them seem almost hopeless to 
the novice. It is not, however, as difficult as it seems at first. The 
spring males are usually distinctly marked and as many of them are fur- 
nished with descriptive names their differentiation is comparatively simple. 
As the females and autumn birds usually retain suggestions of the char- 
acteristic spring markings of the males the difficulty is really less than 
is generally anticipated. Of course, puzzling specimens occur which 
give even the experts some difficulty, but it is usually an alternative between 
two species which can be settled by giving attention to one or more small 
details. In studying the Warblers the observer is advised to become 
familiar with the spring males first. When the males of the common 
species are known, quite an easy matter with such strongly characterized 
forms, most of the females are recognized without much difficulty, as they 
usually carry a subdued reflection of their mate’s brighter colour pattern. 
In the autumn, most juveniles resemble the females closely enough to 
make recognition easy. There are thus few plumages besides those of 
the spring males that have to be learned individually. The Canadian 
Warblers represent twelve genera, seven of which are represented by single 
species only. Dendroica has sixteen species, Vermivora five, and three 
others are represented by three species each. The generic details of the 
most important will be discussed under their proper headings. 
Though called “Warblers” their song should, as a rule, hardly be 
dignified by such a term. With few exceptions the songs are only insig- 
nificant little notes without much prolonged continuity, but as they are 
often specifically distinctive the student is advised to pay close attention 
to them, for when the great Warbler migrations are on, the presence of a 
new or rare species is often first made known by a single unfamiliar sound 
directing attention from the many to the one that would otherwise escape 
notice. 
Economic Status. The Warblers are highly insectivorous. A few 
take seed, and a little fruit that is almost invariably wild, and no com- 
plaints have been made against any of the family. Their effect, therefore, 
is wholly beneficial. Being active, they reach all kinds of insect habitats 
from axils of highest flung leaves to between blades of grass on the ground, 
and as they are small, they are satisfied with insects and insect eggs that 
