23 
Genus II. — SYLYICOLA, Swams. WOOD- WARBLER. 
Bill short, straight, rather strong, tapering, scarcely broader than high 
at the base, compressed toward the end ; upper mandible with its dorsal 
outline dcclinate and nearly straight, the tip slightly declinate, the edges 
overlapping, with a slight notch ; lower mandible with the angle short and 
rounded, the dorsal line straight, the sides convex, the edges a little incli- 
nate, the' tip narrow. Nostrils basal, oval or oblong, partially concealed 
by the feathers. Head of ordinary size ; neck short; body rather slender. 
Feet of ordinary length, rather slender ; tarsus longer than the middle toe, 
much compressed, covered anteriorly with seven scutella, very sharp behind; 
toes of moderate length, slender, free, the outer united as far as the second 
joint, the hind toe proportionally large ; claws moderate, well arched, much 
compressed, laterally grooved, very acute. Plumage soft and blended. 
Bristles at the base of the upper mandible feeble. Wings rather long, little 
curved, pointed ; the second quill longest, the first and third slightly shorter. 
Tail rather long, emarginate. 
THE YELLOW-CROWNED WOOD- WARBLER. 
Sylvicola coronata, Lath. 
PLATE LXXYI. — Male and Female. 
This very abundant species I observed in East Florida, on the 1st of 
March, 1831, in full summer plumage. In South Carolina, no improvement 
on its winter dress could be seen on the 18th of the same month. On the 
10th of April, many were procured by my friend Bachman and myself, in 
the neighbourhood of Charleston. They were in moult, especially about 
the head and neck, where the new feathers were still inclosed in their 
sheath ; but so rapidly did the change take place, that, before a few days 
had elapsed, they were in full plumage. 
During a winter spent in the Floridas, I saw these birds daily, and so had 
abundant opportunity of studying their manners. They were very social 
among themselves, skipped by day along the piazzas, balanced themselves in 
the air, opposite the sides of the houses, in search of spiders and insects, 
