404 
WOOD WARBLERS 
the summer it stays almost wholly in the underbrush, where it keeps 
continually on the move, uttering a quick chirp as it goes. 
During the migrations, Mr. Aiken reports, it has been found 
among cottonwoods and willows bordering streams, and often among 
the pines. He says : “ The male is very musical during the nesting 
season, uttering his sweet little ditty continually as he skips through 
the bushes in search of his morning repast; or, having satisfied his 
appetite, he mounts to the top of some tree in the neighborhood 
of his nest, and repeats at regular intervals a song of remarkable 
fullness for a bird of such minute proportions.” 
645a. Helminthophila rubricapilla gutturalis ( Ridgw.). 
Calaveras Warbler. 
Adult male. — Under parts bright yellow ; upper part of head gray, with 
conspicuous white orbital ring and chestnut 
crown patch , but feathers tipped with gray; 
back olive green, brightening to yellowish 
green on rump and upper tail coverts; wings 
and tail unmarked. Adult female: similar, 
but duller, and crown with little if any chest¬ 
nut. Young: throat, chest, and under tail 
coverts dull yellowish; belly buffy brown; 
upper parts brownish gray, becoming olive 
gray on rump. Male: length (skins) 4.05- 
4.75, wing 2.32-2.46, tail 1.70-1.88, bill .37-.40. Female: length (skins) 
3.85-4.10, wing 2.12-2.19, tail 1.53-1.62, bill .34-.3S. 
Remarks. — The sharply contrasting yellow throat and gray sides of 
head make a striking field character. 
Distribution. — Breeds on mountains in Transition and Canadian zones 
from the Pacific coast of North America eastward during migrations to 
the Rocky Mountains and central Texas, and from British Columbia south 
to Lower California and northern Mexico. 
Nest. — On or near the ground, made of weed stems, grasses, and bark, 
lined with soap-root fiber. Eggs: usually 5, creamy white, spotted with 
reddish brown mixed with lavender in wreath around larger end. 
In California the Calaveras warbler is often met with in the 
chaparral. It looks up at you shyly as it clings to the stalk of a 
bush, and you have barely time to note how the dark sides of its 
throat contrast with its yellow body before it has hopped off to a 
twig and is making its way through its dense little forest. In the 
breeding season, at Fort Klamath, Oregon, Dr. Merrill says, it hunts 
mostly among the aspens, though flying up occasionally into the 
pines. He compares its song, which is loud and constant, to that of 
the yellow warbler. 
646. Helminthophila celata (Say). Orange-crowned Warbler. 
Adult male. — Upper parts dull olive green, brighter on rump ; some¬ 
times tinged with gray, especially on bead; crown with dull orange patch 
concealed except in worn midsummer plumage by grayish olive tips to 
feathers ; orbital ring and superciliary yellow ; under parts dull yellowish, 
