Life histories of North American wood warblers, Part 1 (of 2) — John Shaqi
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
Brewster (1885b) describes a set collected by the late Arthur T. Wayne:
"One is perfectly plain; another * * * has two or three minute specks
which may be genuine shell markings; while the third is unmistakably
spotted and blotched with pale lilac. Over most of the surface these
markings are fine, faint, and sparsely distributed, but about the larger
end they become coarser, thicker, and deeper colored, forming a
well-defined ring or wreath."
Burleigh (1923) writes: "Unlike all the descriptions I had read, and the
few eggs I had seen, these were light pink in ground color and dotted
distinctly over the entire surface with light brown spots, this almost
forming a wreath at the larger end of one egg." These eggs were found
near Augusta, Ga., and the parent was secured.
Wayne (1910) was of the opinion that two broods are raised in a season.
[AUTHOR'S NOTE: The measurements of 50 eggs average 19.5 by 15.0
millimeters; the eggs showing the four extremes measure =21.6= by 14.2,
20.8 by =16.0=, =18.0= by 14.1, and 19.5 by =13.5= millimeters
(Harris).]
_Plumages._--[AUTHOR'S NOTE: Ridgway (1902) describes the juvenal
plumage of Swainson's warbler as follows: "Head, neck, back, rump, upper
tail-coverts, chest, sides, and flanks plain brown (varying from
broccoli to bister); rest of under parts whitish or dull pale yellowish,
more or less clouded with brown; middle and greater wing-coverts
indistinctly tipped with cinnamon-brown; otherwise like adults, but no
trace of lighter superciliary nor darker postocular stripes." Specimens
that I have seen in this plumage are more nearly "cinnamon-brown" than
the colors named above on the back and wing coverts, and the latter show
very little evidence of cinnamon tips.]
The postjuvenal molt, which evidently includes only the contour plumage
and the wing coverts, occurs early in the summer; I have seen young
birds beginning to acquire the first winter plumage as early as June 12,
and others that had nearly completed the molt on July 20; these birds
were not yet fully grown. Wayne (1910) writes: "I have taken young birds
which were as large as the adults and which were acquiring their
autumnal plumage as early as June 2, but it must be borne in mind that
the season in which these young were taken (1906) was exceptionally
advanced."
Brewster (1885a) describes the young bird in its fall plumage as
follows: "Entire upper parts rich olive strongly tinged with
reddish-brown, the crown scarcely deeper-colored than the back, the
wings a trifle redder; loral stripe blackish; superciliary stripe tinged
with yellow; under parts strongly yellowish, otherwise like the adult."
The nuptial plumage is apparently assumed by wear and fading, the
reddish-brown and yellowish colors becoming much duller. There are no
specimens available of either young or adult birds that indicate a
prenuptial molt.
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