254 
FLYCATCHERS 
without distinct rusty edgings and inner webs of tail feathers usually with¬ 
out rusty edgings. Length : 7.00-7.30, wing 2.90-3.25, tail 3.00-3.25, bill 
from nostril .4S-.55, tarsus .70-.75. 
Remarks. — The olive coloration is enough to distinguish this fly¬ 
catcher. 
Distribution. — Breeds in Lower Sonoran zone of Arizona and western 
Mexico ; casual to Fort Lyon, Colorado. 
Nest. — Usually in holes in trees, 15 to 40 feet from the ground, made, 
in two recorded cases, of fur and feathers. Eggs: 3 to 6, curiously 
marked with fine lines and intricate pencillings of black and various 
shades of purplish brown over buffy or creamy ground. 
The olivaceous flycatcher, which is the smallest of the United 
States species of Myiarchus , lives in brushy canyons in the moun¬ 
tains of southern Arizona, frequenting the banks of streams, where 
it perches on dead limbs looking for insects.. The only note heard 
by Mr. Stephens, who discovered it, was a ‘ mournful peeur. ’ 
GENUS SAYORNIS. 
General Characters. — Wing more than 3.25, but not more than five 
times as long as tarsus; tarsus longer than middle toe with claw ; tail 
emarginate. 
KEY TO SPECIES. 
1. Tail olive gray. Colorado to Atlantic. phcebe, p. 254. 
1'. Tail black. 
2. Under parts partly brown. saya, p. 255. 
2'. Under parts partly black. 
3. Under tail coverts streaked with black . . . nigricans, p. 255. 
3'. Under tail coverts pure white. semiatra, p. 256. 
466. Sayornis phcebe (Lath.). Phcebe. 
• Upper parts olive gray, darker on head ; under parts whitish, tinged 
below with pale yellowish, sides of 
breast with olive gray. Length: 6.25- 
7.00, wing 3.25-3.55, tail 3.00-3.40. 
Distribution. — Breeds chiefly in Tran¬ 
sition and Upper Sonoran zones in east¬ 
ern North America, west to Colo¬ 
rado, south to the Gulf of Mexico; 
winters from the southern Atlantic and 
Gulf states to Mexico and Cuba; re¬ 
corded from Los Angeles Co., Califor¬ 
nia, in winter. 
Nest. — A bulky felted mass, made 
largely of mosses and lined with feath¬ 
ers ; attached to rocks, bridges, and 
beams of buildings. Eggs: 3 to 8, 
white, sometimes finely but sparsely 
speckled around larger end with 
brownish. 
From Biological Survey, U. S. Dept, of 
Agriculture. 
Fig. 329. 
Food. — Chiefly injurious insects. 
The habits of the phcebe are very similar to those of the black 
