WOOD WARBLERS 
403 
lores, eye ring-, and under parts white, tinged with brownish on sides and 
huffy on chest. Adult female in spring and summer: like summer male, 
but chestnut of crown and upper tail coverts lighter, crown patch re¬ 
stricted, sometimes obsolete. Adult male in fall and winter: upper parts 
tinged with brown ; crown patch concealed by gray tips to feathers ; 
under parts brownish buff, becoming whitish on belly. Young in first 
plumage: like adults, but without crown patch ; upper tail coverts huffy 
brown instead of chestnut; wings with two bars; under parts white. 
Male: length (skins) 3.60-4.05, wing 2.17-2.29, tail ^62-1.73, bill .33-.35. 
Female: length (skins) 3.62-3.75, wing 2.03-2.08, tail 1.47—1.57, bill .30- 
.35. 
Distribution. — Breeds in Lower Sonoran zone from the Santa Clara 
Valley, Utah, south through Arizona and Sonora to Jalisco, Mexico. 
Nest. — Usually in deserted woodpecker holes, behind bark of trees, in 
giant cactus, or by roots along river banks, 2 to 20 feet from the ground, 
made of fine straws, leaves, horsehair, and feathers. Eggs: 3 to 5, white 
or creamy, finely speckled, usually in dense ring around larger end, with 
reddish brown. 
Mr. O. W. Howard found the Lucy warblers fairly common along 
the river-bottoms throughout southern Arizona, especially in the 
willow and mesquite thickets, and Mr. Scott found them breeding 
at the base of the Santa Catalina Mountains up to 4000 feet. 
Among the nests found by Mr. Howard some were in deserted 
verdin and woodpecker nests. He says that many are destroyed by 
wood rats and snakes. 
644. Helminthophila virginise {Baird). Virginia Warbler. 
Adult male in spring and summer . — Upper parts gray, rump and upper 
tail coverts bright yellowish green ; crown with chestnut patch concealed by 
gray tips in fresh plumage ; orbital ring white, conspicuous ; under parts 
dull white with chest and usually throat yellow. Adult female in spring and 
summer: Like adult male, but duller, especially on rump and upper tail 
coverts ; crown patch restricted, sometimes almost obsolete ; back browner. 
Adult male in fall and winter: like summer male, but yellow duller, crown 
patch concealed by grayish tips to feathers; upper parts and flanks 
strongly tinged with brown. Young in first plumage : two wing bars dull 
buffy; under parts brownish gray ; median parts of breast and belly 
white. Male : length (skins) 4.08-4.30, wing 2.40-2.42, bill .35-.39. Fe¬ 
male: length (skins) 4, wing 2.26-2.38, tail 1.79-1.84, bill .37. 
Distribution. — Rocky Mountain region of the United States from Wy¬ 
oming to Nevada and south to Guanajuato and Jalisco. 
Nest. — On the ground under a bush or tuft of grass; made of straws, 
rootlets, and fibers, loosely put together. Eggs: often 4, creamy white, 
finely and rather densely speckled over whole surface or around larger end 
with chestnut and purplish gray. 
Mr. Ridgway found the Virginia warbler common in the Hum¬ 
boldt and Wasatch Mountains, and Mr. O. W. Howard states that it 
is quite common in the pine regions of Arizona above 5000 feet. In 
Colorado Mr. Aiken rarely finds it above 7500 feet, and he thinks that 
it prefers the foothills. 
Unlike other warblers found in Arizona, Mr. Howard says, during 
