File:The oist (1914) (14565792417).jpg

Identifier: oist31albi (find matches)
Title: The oist
Year: 1886 (1880s)
Authors:
Subjects: Birds
Publisher: Albion, N.Y. : Frank H. Lattin
Contributing Library: American Museum of Natural History Library
Digitizing Sponsor: Biodiversity Heritage Library

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friend is at home, lead-ing a quiet secluded life keepingmostly close to the ground where hegleams his subsistance among lowbushes and from the ground. They are not near as active or ner-vously disposed as most of our war-blers are; the males can frequentlybe seen sitting on a low dead limb,almost motionless, uttering their song,running somewhat like this: Visht-visht-visht-vit-view. The closest 1can compare it with, is the Juncossong, but it does not sound near assweet or musical as the latter. Thefemales keep more closely in seclu-sion, treading their way close to theground in the dense underbrush, veryseldom showing above the brush,consequently they are hard to observe. To my knowledge the birds aremated when they arrive from theirwinters sojourn and will at oncechoose the place where they decideto make their summer home. They,however, will not start housekeepingimmediately, but seem to prefer aweek or two in real happy carefreelife before taking the tedious task 106 THIC OOLOGIST
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Nest and Eggs of Yellow Wrabler —Photo by P. G. Howea THE OOI.OGIST 107 they have to perform. The pairs arequite a distance away from the otherof their specie, as a close neighborwill cause an everlasting lot of troubleand fight. Nest building begins the last weekin May, and up to the 20th of Junenests containing fresh eggs may befound, but the largest per cent buildabout the 25th of May. The nests arealways very carefully hidden in athick clump of bushes or weeds andthe fast growing fern is calculated tocomplete the work of screening it.Tt is built quite loosely and bulky;dry twigs, grasses, weedstems, vines,bark strips and sometimes moss, en-ter into the outer composition, wliilethe lining consists of fine weed root-lets, round grass stems or hair, oc-casionally a few feathers and somecocoon silk is also used. The elevation is from slightly above the groundtill to six feet up. Those of the maxi-mum elevation are built in the topsof close little fir trees or cedar trees. The number

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