and are even tamer than our United States varieties. They usually make
their nests at low elevations in dead and decayed stumps and line the
bottom of the cavity, which varies from three to eight inches in depth,
with moss and fur. Their eggs, which they lay in May, June or July, are
white, specked with reddish brown and cannot with any certainty be
distinguished from those of the Black-capped Chickadees, the eggs of all
the species showing considerable variations; size .60 × .45.
740a. ACADIAN CHICKADEE. _Penthestes hudsonicus littoralis._
Range.--Kowak River, northwest Alaska.
A larger and grayer form of the last species; nesting habits and eggs
not differing.
740b. COLUMBIAN CHICKADEE. _Penthestes hudsonicus columbianus._
Range.--Rocky Mountains from northern United States to Alaska.
Like _hudsonicus_ but with the crown slaty instead of brownish. No
difference can be distinguished either in their habits or eggs.
740c. CANADIAN CHICKADEE. _Penthestes hudsonicus littoralis._
Range.--Eastern half of Canada and northern New England and New York.
These birds were formerly _hudsonicus_ in company with the western ones,
but they are now supposed to be a trifle smaller and with the crown
duller; this division does not affect the similarity of their habits and
eggs.
[Illustration 438: Hudsonian Chickadee.]
[Illustration: White.]
[Illustration: deco.]
[Illustration: left hand margin.]
Page 437
741. CHESTNUT-BACKED CHICKADEE. _Penthestes rufescens rufescens._
Range.--Pacific coast from Oregon to Alaska.
This species is similar to the Hudsonian in having a brown crown and
black throat, but has in addition, a chestnut colored back and sides.
They breed locally in Oregon, more commonly in Washington and are
abundant in British Columbia, making the nests of animal fur in holes in
dead stubs. Their eggs vary in number from five to eight and are creamy
white, dotted with reddish; size .60 × .45. Data.--Dayton, Oregon, May
28, 1906. Nest of hair and fur in willow stub, 10 feet up.
741a. CALIFORNIA CHICKADEE. _Penthestes rufescens neglectus._
Range.--Coast regions of California.
This variety is not as rufous on the sides as the more northern one. Its
habits and eggs are the same.
741b. BARLOW'S CHICKADEE. _Penthestes rufescens barlowi_.
Range.--About Monterey Bay, California.
This variety is said to have no rusty on the flanks. Its habits and eggs
are like those of the others.
742a. PALLID WREN-TIT. _Chamæa fasciata henshawi_.
Range.--Interior of California from Lower California to the Sacramento
Valley.
This duller colored variety has the same nesting habits and similar eggs
to those of the Coast Wren-tit.
742b. Coast Wren-Tit. _Chamæa fasciata fasciata._
Range.--Pacific coast from southern California north to Oregon.
These peculiar brownish gray colored birds frequent the tangled
underbrush of ravines and mountain sides where they lead the life of a
recluse. They nest at low elevations in the densest thickets, making
them of twigs, strips of bark, grasses and feathers, compactly woven
together and located in bushes from one to four feet from the ground.
They lay from three to five plain, unmarked, pure white eggs; size .75 ×
.54. Data.--Wrights, Cal. Nest in a tangle of vines in a deep ravine;
composed of strips of bark, moss and grasses, lined with cattle hair; a
bulky nest.
743. BUSH-TIT. _Psaltriparus minimus minimus._
Range.--Pacific coast of northern California, Oregon and Washington.
These diminutive little birds build nests that are marvels of
architecture, making long purse-like structures, suspended from twigs
usually at low elevations from the ground. The nests are made of moss,
lichens, fibres, ferns and grasses and lined with feathers or wool; the
opening is on one side near the top, and a typical nest averages 12
inches in length, by 4.5 inches in diameter at the bottom and 3 at the
top. Their eggs number from four to nine and are pure white; size .54 ×
.40. The birds are very active and have the same habits as the
Chickadees, being seen often suspended, head downward, from the ends of
twigs, in their search for insects.
[Illustration 439: White.]
[Illustration: White.]
[Illustration: White.]
[Illustration: right hand margin.]
Page 438
743a. CALIFORNIA BUSH-TIT. _Psaltriparus minimus californicus._
Range.--California with the exception of the northern part.
This sub-species, which is like the last but with a lighter brown head,
has the same habits, nests in the same manner and its eggs are not
distinguishable from those of the others.
743b. GRINDA'S BUSH-TIT. _Psaltriparus minimus grindæ._
Range.--Southern Lower California.
The nesting habits of this variety, which is very similar to the last,
do not vary in any respect; eggs indistinguishable.
744. LEAD-COLORED BUSH-TIT. _Psaltriparus plumbeus._
Range.--Rocky Mountain region from Wyoming south to Arizona.
This species suspends its semi-pensile nests in bushes or trees, and
some times from the mistletoe, which grows on numerous trees in southern
Arizona. The nests are composed like those of the Cal. Bush-Tit and
range from 6 to 10 inches in length. The eggs are white, five or six in
number and measure .55 × .42.
745. LLOYD'S BUSH-TIT. _Psaltriparus melanotis lloydi._
Range.--Northern Mexico north into western Texas and New Mexico.
This species is similar to the lead-colored Bush-Tit but has the ear
coverts glossy black. Like the others, it builds a long pensile nest of
similar material and suspended from the extremities of limbs near the
ground The five to seven eggs are pure white. Size .58 × .42.
[Illustration 440: E. L. Bickford. BUSH-TIT AND NEST.]
[Illustration: deco.]
[Illustration: left hand margin.]
Page 439
746. VERDIN. _Auriparus flaviceps flaviceps_.
Range.--Mexican border of the United States, north to Colorado and
Nevada.
This Bush-Tit has a bright yellow head and throat, the upper parts being
gray and the belly, white. They are abundant in chaparral brush, locally
throughout their range. Their large globular nests are situated in
bushes at low elevations from the ground, and are made of twigs and
weeds, softly lined with fur and feathers. Their three to six eggs are
pale greenish blue, specked and dotted with reddish brown. Size .58 ×
.44. Data.--Brownsville, Texas, May 8, 1894. Large nest of sticks and
thorns, lined with hair and feathers, and located in a bush in brush
thicket, 8 feet from the ground.
746a. CAPE VERDIN. _Auriparus flaviceps lamprocephalus._
Range.--Lower California.
This new sub-species is said to have shorter wings and tail, and also to
be brighter yellow on the head. Its habits and eggs will not differ from
those of the common Verdin or Yellow-headed Bush-Tit.
WARBLERS, KINGLETS and GNATCATCHERS. Family SYLVIIDÆ
747. KENNICOTT'S WILLOW WARBLER. _Acanthopneuste borealis._
Range.--Asia, casually found in Alaska.
This species breeds in the extreme northern parts of Asia, and I believe
its eggs have never been found on this continent. They build their nests
of moss and grasses, on the ground in open woods, concealing them under
tufts of grass or tussocks of earth. The three to five eggs are white,
spotted with pale reddish brown. Size .70 × .50.
748. GOLDEN-CROWNED KINGLET. _Regulus satrapa satrapa._
Range.--North America, breeding from northern United States northward,
and south in the Rockies to Mexico, and in the Alleghanies to the
Carolinas; winters throughout the United States.
This rugged little fellow appears to be perfectly content in our
northern states even during the most severe winters and leaves us early
in the spring for his breeding grounds farther north. They are usually
found in company with Chickadees and, like them, may be seen hanging to
twigs in all sorts of positions as they search for their meagre fare.
Their nests are large, round structures of green moss, bark strips and
fine rootlets, very thickly lined with soft feathers; these are placed
in forks or partially suspended among the branches of spruce trees,
usually high above the ground. During June they lay from five to ten
eggs of a dull whitish or grayish color, spotted heavily with pale brown
and lilac. Size .55 × .42.
[Illustration 441: Greenish blue.]
[Illustration: Verdin.]
[Illustration: White.]
[Illustration: Gray.]
[Illustration: right hand margin.]
Page 440
748a. WESTERN GOLDEN-CROWNED KINGLET. _Regulas satrapa olivaceus._
Range.--Pacific coast from southern California to Alaska.
This variety is said to be brighter colored than the last; its habits
and eggs are the same in all particulars.
749. RUBY-CROWNED KINGLET. _Regulus calendula calendula._
Range.--North America, breeding from the northern border of the United
States northward, and farther south in mountain ranges; winters in
southern United States.
This little bird is of the size of the Golden-crowned Kinglet (4.25
inches long) and has a partially concealed patch of red on the crown,
not bordered by black and yellow as is the last species. Their nests are
similar in construction to those of the last species and are situated in
coniferous trees at any altitude from the ground. Their four to nine
eggs are creamy white, finely specked with reddish brown. Size .56 ×
.44.
[Illustration 442: Golden-crowned Kinglets.]
[Illustration: White.]
[Illustration: C. A. Smith. NEST AND EGGS OF BLUE-GRAY GNATCATCHER.]
[Illustration: left hand margin.]
Page 441
749A. SITKA KINGLET. _Regulas calendula grinnelli._
Range.--Pacific coast, breeding in Alaska.
Said to be brighter than the preceding variety.
749b. DUSKY KINGLET. _Regulus calendula obscurus._
Range.--Guadalupe Island, Lower California.
This species nests during March in the large cypress and pine groves at
high elevations above the ground. The nests are similar in construction
to those of the common Ruby-crown, and the eggs are scarcely different
from some specimens of that species; white, dotted and wreathed with
reddish brown. Size .56 × .43.
751. BLUE-GRAY GNATCATCHER. _Polioptila cærulea cærulea._
Range.--United States, east of the Rockies, breeding from the Gulf to
the Middle and Central States; casually north to Massachusetts and
Minnesota.
These graceful birds are bluish gray above with a black forehead and
central tail feathers, and white underparts. They are common in wooded
districts in the south, where they saddle their beautiful nests upon
horizontal branches or in crotches usually at quite an elevation from
the ground; they resemble large Ruby-throated Hummers' nests but the
walls are much higher and thicker; they are made of plant fibres and
down, lined with cottony substances and hair, and covered on the outside
with lichens to match the limb upon which it is placed. Their eggs are
bluish white, specked with reddish chestnut. Size .58 × .45.
Data.--Chattanooga, Tenn., April 30, 1900. Nest of moss, covered with
lichens and lined with hair and feathers; 20 feet from the ground in a
small tree.
751a. WESTERN GNATCATCHER. _Polioptila cærulea obscura._
Range.--Western United States and Lower California.
The habits and eggs of this sub-species are the same as those of the
eastern bird, and the nests do not differ except, perhaps, in less
ornamentation of the exterior.
752. PLUMBEOUS GNATCATCHER. _Polioptila plumbea._
Range.--Mexican boundary from western Texas to southern California.
This species has a bright shining black crown and more black on the tail
than the eastern Gnatcatcher. They saddle their nests upon the branches
of trees or in upright forks, usually at an elevation of ten feet or
more from the ground; the nests are made of plant fibres and fine bark
strips, compactly felted together, and with little, if any, ornamental
lichens on the exterior. Their eggs are pale greenish blue, spotted with
reddish brown, and vary from three to five in number. Size .54 × .44.
[Illustration 443: Ruby-crowned Kinglet.]
[Illustration: Bluish white.]
[Illustration: Greenish blue.]
[Illustration: right hand margin.]
Page 442
753. BLACK-TAILED GNATCATCHER. _Polioptila californica._
Range.--Pacific coast of southern California and northern Lower
California.
This bird is very similar to the last but has still less white on the
outer tail feathers. Like the last, the nests of this species usually
lack the exterior covering of lichens, being made of vegetable fibres
and plant down, firmly quilted together and saddled on horizontal limbs
or placed in forks of trees at any height from the ground. Their eggs
are grayish white, specked with bright reddish brown. Size .55 × .44.
Data.--Escondido, Cal., May 17, 1903. 5 eggs. Nest on a large limb of a
sycamore, 30 feet above ground; made of weed fibres, etc., lined with
hair and fine fibres.
THRUSHES, SOLITAIRES, BLUEBIRDS, ETC. Family TURDIDAE
754. TOWNSEND'S SOLITAIRE. _Myadestes townsendi._
Range.--Western United States, breeding from Arizona, New Mexico and
southern California north to British Columbia.
This unique species is of a uniform brownish gray color, with a white
eye ring, narrow bar on wing, and outer tail feathers, and with the
bases of the primaries rusty colored. It is a ground inhabiting bird,
feeding upon insects and berries in shrubbery and thickets. Their song
is said to be liquid, melodious and often long continued, equaling that
of any other bird. They nest on the ground in hollows under banks or
crevices about roots of trees or fallen stumps, making a large, loosely
constructed pile of weeds and trash, hollowed and lined with rootlets.
The three or four eggs, which are laid in June, are grayish white,
spotted with pale brown, chiefly or most abundantly about the large end.
Size .96 × .70.
755. WOOD THRUSH. _Hylocichla mustelina._
Range.--Eastern United States, breeding from North Carolina and Kansas
north to northern United States; winters south of our borders.
This Thrush with his brightly spotted breast is the most handsome of
this group of musical birds. They are common in damp woods and thickets,
in which places they breed, placing their nests of straw, leaves and
grasses in low trees usually between four and ten feet from the ground;
their nests are often very rustic, being ornamented by pieces of paper
and twigs with dead leaves attached hanging from the sides of the quite
bulky structures. During May or June they lay three or four greenish
blue eggs of about the shade of a Robin's. Size 1.05 × .70.
[Illustration 444: Blue-gray Gnatcatcher.]
[Illustration: Grayish white.]
[Illustration: Grayish white.]
[Illustration: Greenish blue.]
[Illustration: left hand margin.]
Page 443
756. VEERY. _Hylocichla fuscescens fuscescens._
Range.--Eastern North America, breeding in the northern half of its
United States range and in the southern British Provinces.
The Veery is very abundantly distributed in woodland, either moist or
dry, and nests on the ground or within a very few inches of it, usually
placing its structures of woven bark strips and grasses, in the midst of
a clump of sprouts or ferns. The three or four eggs which they lay in
May or June are bluish green, much darker than those of the Wood Thrush,
and nearly the color of those of the Catbird. Size .90 × .65.
756a. WILLOW THRUSH. _Hylocichla fuscescens salicicola._
Range.--Rocky Mountain region, north to British Columbia.
The nests and eggs of this similar bird do not differ from those of the
last.
757. GRAY-CHEEKED THRUSH. _Hylocichla aliciæ aliciæ._
Range.--Breeds from Labrador to Alaska; winters south to Central
America.
The nesting habits and eggs of this species are very similar to those of
the following sub-species and the same description will answer for both.
757. BICKNELL'S THRUSH. _Hylocichla aliciæ bicknelli._
Range.--Breeds in the Catskills, White Mountains and Nova Scotia.
These birds, which are practically identical with the preceding, build
their nests at low elevations in trees, usually evergreens when present,
making them of twigs, moss and rootlets, lined with fine grasses. The
eggs, which are laid during May or June, are pale greenish blue, spotted
and blotched with pale brown or russet. Size .88 × .64. Data.--Seal
Island, Nova Scotia, June 3, 1901. Nest of green moss and rootlets, in a
spruce, 5 feet from the ground.
758. RUSSET-BACKED THRUSH. _Hylocichla ustulata ustulata._
Range.--Pacific coast, breeding in Oregon and Alaska; winters in Central
America.
This species is very abundant in moist thickets throughout its range,
nesting in bushes and low trees, and making them of weed
[Illustration 445: Wood Thrush.]
[Illustration: Wilson's Thrush.]
[Illustration: Greenish blue.]
[Illustration: right hand margin.]
Page 444
[Illustration 446: WOOD THRUSH.]
Page 445
stalks, bark strips, grasses and moss, lined with fine black rootlets.
They are found at elevations of from two to ten feet above the ground.
Like the Wood Thrush the birds are tame while sitting on the nest and
will allow a very close approach, without taking alarm; nests are
frequently found which are made almost entirely out of green moss and
are very handsome structures. Their three to five eggs are laid in May
or June; they are greenish blue, spotted with brown of varying shades.
Size .92 × .65. Data.--Eureka, California, July 6, 1899. Nest in a fir
tree, 5 feet from the ground; made of moss and strips of redwood bark. 4
eggs.
758a. OLIVE-BACKED THRUSH. _Hylocichla swainsoni._
Range.--Eastern North America, breeding chiefly north of the United
States, but locally in the northern parts, and abundantly in mountain
ranges.
The nesting habits and eggs of this eastern representative of the last
species are like those of that bird in all respects and the eggs cannot
be distinguished from those of _ustulatus_.
758b. OLIVE-BACKED THRUSH. _Hylocichla œdica_.
Range.--California and southern Oregon.
Nesting habits and eggs identical with those of _ustulatus._
759. ALASKA HERMIT THRUSH. _Hylocichla guttata guttata._
Range.--Pacific coast from British Columbia to Alaska. Winters in
Mexico.
The Hermit Thrushes can readily be identified from any other by the
reddish brown tail which is in marked contrast to the color of the back.
The nesting habits and eggs of this species are precisely like those of
the eastern Hermit Thrush, which is a sub-species of this.
759a. AUDUBON'S HERMIT THRUSH. _Hylocichla guttata auduboni._
Range.--Rocky Mountain region of the United States. Winters in Central
America.
The nesting habits of this bird are like those of the next except that
it more frequently nests in bushes above the ground. The eggs are not
distinctive.
[Illustration 447: Greenish blue.]
[Illustration: Gray-cheeked Thrush. Olive-backed Thrush.]
[Illustration: deco.]
[Illustration: right hand margin.]
Page 446
759b. HERMIT THRUSH. _Hylocichla guttata pallasi._
Range.--Eastern North America, breeding in northern United States and
north to Labrador; winters in southern United States.
This species, which is noted for its sweet and musical song, frequents
damp swamps and thickets where it builds its nest either on the ground
or near it, like that of the Wilson Thrush; it is made of shreds of
bark, grasses, leaves and rootlets, lined with fine rootlets; the three
or four eggs, which are deposited in May or June, are bluish green and
cannot, with certainty, be distinguished from those of the Veery; size
.85 × .65.
759c. DWARF HERMIT THRUSH. _Hylocichla guttata nanus._
Range.--Pacific coast of United States, from Washington, southward.
The nesting habits and eggs of this slightly smaller and duller colored
variety are like those of the other Hermit Thrushes.
760. RED-WINGED THRUSH. _Turdus musicus._
Range.--An Old World species, accidentally straying to Greenland.
This common European bird nests at low elevations in bushes or trees,
laying four or five bluish green eggs, spotted with reddish brown; size
1.05 × .75.
761. ROBIN. _Planesticus migratorius migratorius._
Range.--North America east of the Rockies, breeding from the middle
portions of the United States, north to the Arctic Ocean.
These common birds nest in trees about houses, in orchards, open woods,
in corners of fences, on blinds on houses, and in fact almost every
conceivable position. Their nests are made of grasses, firmly cemented
together with mud and lined with finer grasses; when placed in trees
they are generally firmly saddled in crotches and may be found at any
height, from on the ground to sixty feet above it. Their eggs are
greenish blue; size 1.15 × .80. Eggs may be found at any time from May
until July or August as they raise several broods a season.
[Illustration 448: Hermit Thrush.]
[Illustration: Bluish green.]
[Illustration: Greenish blue.]
[Illustration: American Robin.]
[Illustration: left hand margin.]
Page 447
761b. SOUTHERN ROBIN. _Planesticus migratorius achrusterus._
Range.--The Carolinas and Georgia.
The eggs of this bird, which is said to be smaller and duller colored
than the northern variety, show no differences in any respect.
762. SAN LUCAS ROBIN. _Planesticus confinis._
Range.--Southern Lower California.
This is a very much paler form of the American Robin; its eggs probably
will not differ from those of the others.
[Illustration 449: J. B. Pardoe. NEST AND EGGS OF ROBIN.]
[Illustration: right hand margin.]
Page 448
763. VARIED THRUSH. _Ixoreus nævius nævius._
Range.--Pacific coast from northern California to Alaska; south to
Mexico in winter.
These handsome birds breed abundantly in Alaska and locally in mountain
ranges south to northern California. They nest at low elevations in
trees, making them of moss, twigs, weeds and grasses, forming a flat
shallow structure. Their eggs are greenish blue sharply but sparingly
spotted with dark brown; size 1.12 × .80. Data.--Delta of Kowak River,
Alaska, June 11, 1899. Four eggs. Nest 12 feet from the ground, against
the trunk of a slender spruce and supported by a clump of stiff twigs.
763a. NORTHERN VARIED THRUSH. _Ixoreus nævius meruloides._
Range.--Interior of western North America, breeding from British
Columbia to Alaska. Its habits and eggs do not differ from those of the
last.
764. SIBERIAN RED-SPOTTED BLUETHROAT. _Cyanosylvia suecica robusta._
Range.--Northern Asia; casually to Alaska.
This beautiful foreigner nests on the ground and lays four to six
greenish blue eggs, spotted with reddish brown; size .75 × .50.
765. WHEATEAR. _Saxicola œnanthe œnanthe._
Range.--Asia; casual in Alaska in summer; nesting habits and eggs like
the next.
765a. GREENLAND WHEATEAR. _Saxicola œnanthe leucorhoa._
Range.--Europe and Greenland; casual on the Atlantic coast of North
America.
This very abundant Old World species is a common breeding bird in
Greenland and probably also in Labrador. They nest in crevices of
quarries, holes in the ground, or stone walls, making a rude nest of
weeds, moss or grasses, lined with hair or feathers, and during May lay
from four to six pale greenish blue eggs; size .90 × .60.
[Illustration 450: Greenish blue.]
[Illustration: Wheatear.]
[Illustration: Pale greenish blue.]
[Illustration: left hand margin.]
Page 449
[Illustration 451: BLUEBIRD.]
Page 450
766. BLUEBIRD. _Sialia sialis sialis._
Range.--Eastern United States, breeding from the Gulf to southern
Canada. Winters in the southern half of the United States.
These familiar birds build in cavities in trees, usually below 20 feet
from the ground, crevices among ledges, bird boxes and in any suitable
nook they may discover about buildings, providing that English Sparrows
do not molest them. They raise several broods a year, commencing in
April when they lay from three to six pale bluish white eggs (rarely
pure white); size .80 × .60. The cavities of their nesting sites are
lined with grasses and feathers usually, although I have found the eggs
on the unlined bottom of cavities in trees.
766a. AZURE BLUEBIRD. _Sialia sialis fulva._
Range.--This pale variety is found in southern Arizona and southward.
Its nesting habits are the same and the eggs are indistinguishable from
the last.
767. WESTERN BLUEBIRD. _Sialia mexicana occidentalis._