Life histories of North American wood warblers, Part 1 (of 2)Bent, Arthur Cleveland
Science
Life histories of North American wood warblers, Part 1 (of 2)
Bent, Arthur Cleveland
Birds -- North America; Passeriformes; Wood warblers
_Nesting._--The Cape May warbler seeks for its summer home the country
of the pointed firs and spruces that tower like tapering church spires
in the Canadian Life Zone of our northern border and in Canada. It seems
to prefer an open, parklike stand of these noble trees rather than the
denser coniferous forests, though it often finds a congenial home along
the borders of the forests or in the more open spaces within them,
especially where there is a mixture of tall white or yellow birches, or
a few hemlocks. Its breeding range follows the Canadian Zone rather
closely, as along the cool coastline of eastern Maine. James Bond writes
to me of its interesting distribution in that state: "In the eastern
half of the state it is found mainly along the coast, as far south as
Hog Island, Knox County. It ranges across Maine through Washington,
Aroostook and northern Penobscot Counties, but is a rare species in the
interior, and is unknown in summer from the Bangor and Lincoln sections
of Penobscot County. I found it most abundant in southern Mount Desert
Island in the vicinity of Ship Harbor. Here several pairs nest every
year in the cool, often fog-drenched woods, although I have found but
one nest."
The first published report of the nesting of the Cape May warbler was
perhaps based on an error in identification. Montague Chamberlain (1885)
reported that his friend James W. Banks found a nest apparently "just
outside the city limits" of Saint John, New Brunswick; he states that it
"was hid among a cluster of low cedars growing in an exposed position,
on a rather open hill-side, near a gentleman's residence, and within a
stone's throw of a much frequented lane. The nest was placed less than
three feet from the ground and within six inches of the tips of the
branches." The location of this nest, as will be seen from the accounts
that follow, was entirely different from that of the many nests found
since; both nest and eggs were said to resemble somewhat those of the
magnolia warbler; no male Cape May warbler was seen or heard, and the
bird Banks reports having shot from the nest may have been wrongly
identified, since the females of the two species are somewhat alike.
Referring to this account, James Bond (1937) remarks: "It would be wise
to regard the 'classical' nest taken near Saint John, New Brunswick, by
Banks as that of a Magnolia Warbler, as is indicated not only by its
situation but by its construction, for the nest of the Cape May Warbler
is a decidedly more bulky affair. I mention this since recent books
still perpetuate this undoubted error, ignoring the information that has
been gleaned during the past twenty years."
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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