Yellow-headed Blackeied, (. Xanthocep - 
hnlufi inter neephalus \. — An abundant bird 
in some portions of the Territory, inhabit- 
ing marshes and wet prairies. At Fort 
Laramie I found a breeding place and se- 
cured fifteen nest complements of eggs and 
a few nests. The nests were built in the 
tall rushes of a slough and formed of rush 
leaves of the year before, very nicely 
woven together and lined with the same 
material in fine pieces. They were firmly 
attached to three or four' rushes and built 
very close to the water among a colony of 
Bed-wings, ( Agelceus phoeniceus). The 
male is a very handsome bird. Black; 
head (excepting lores) neck and the upper 
part of breast yellow, large white patch on 
wings, length 11 inches, wing 5£, tail 4^, 
female brownish-black, no white on wing, 
considerably smaller than the male ; length ^ 
9 inches or a little more. Have never 23 
seen the young, but they are said to be g 
“much like the female,” ( Coues ). The Q 
male sometimes has slight touches of yel- M 
low on belly and legs. It is the hand- 
somest of all black-birds, and almost ^ 
entirely a western bird. It has been ^ 
quoted from Greenland ; Reinhart . — Ghas. 
T. Morrison , Fort McKinney , Wyo. Ter. 
set of three Yellow- 
h eade d Blackbird s, one marbled, with no 
spots, p. fj. P 
0.8s O. VIH. Dec. 1883. p. 96 
