The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1903-09-27
MYRIADS OF
BIRD MITES
Wdrblers Most Perplexing and
Fascinating to Students.
FORTY DIFFERENT SPECIES
Now Migrating-Their Colors, Hab' !
and Good Work-Flight Of the
Hawks-Hints to the
STUDENT
BY EDWARD 9. CLARK.
associate member American Crnithos
iogists' Union.)

logists' Union.)
e-9 ATE sep,cmber is the warbler
Y lseason Untold thousands Of the
A< birds forming this family are
S,rs5I,7 now hurryng southward. Save
g4sssshhj to the keen observer their
UlgheIGe ls unsupported. They Keep as
ruie rigidly to the tree tops, where they
carry on unendlng war against the my
Rad OF insect foes Of the foliage.
Tho warblers are mites OF creatures.
tho largest OF them being about the size
or the English sparrow, while the great
maiority are but trilc larger than the
k,nglet, which is the smallest bird we
have, barring only the ruby throat hum
mer. Search all the bird families and
you will find few members that are
arrayed like unto these Industrious little
Ia borers on mans beaalf.
There are something like forty species
of warblers. and in their colorB they
shade into one another so perpexingly
that If the novice In the observing field
take them up DIS his first study no Ia much
moro than likely to conclude before the
season is half spent that the bird lesson
is too hard to be learned. and to put his
glass back into the case and to forego
for all time his trips afield
DIFFICULTIES OF WARBLER STUDY.
On the other hand, for the person who
has learned his alphabet and his first
second and third book Of birds, the warb-
lers constitute, so to speak, volume OF
the rarest interest. An observer may
scrape acquaintance with the warblers
in the Bpringtime and think that he has
mastered them so completely that he will
not be obliged to hurry after each field
trip to some museum of birds to make
sure OF his identiflcations. September
comes and the springtlme enthusiast
gees again to warbler highways to meet
his friends Of the vernal year as they
come hurrying from the north when the
year Is In the sere and yellow. He finds
multitude Of warblers In a tree, and 10.
he is in luck If he can name ono Of
them. Many of the males have changed
their plumage with the changing sea-
son; the young of the year look unlike
either parent, though in most instances
bearing some resemblance to the adult
female, and the result is that the war
bier student, not knowing the idlosyn-
cracies of the warblers' fall fashion in
dress, Is inclined to believe that he has
struck score OF new species. As mat
ter of fact, In the fall one must learn the
warblers all over again.
After two "sets of seasons" with plenty
of closet study over colored plates and
stuffed specimens in the winter time, the
observer becomes fairly familiar with the
| warblers. and from that time forward
he Is much more than likely to neglect
| his sparrow. thrush. hawk and plover
| friends for an intimacy with the many
hued warbler midgets.
| have seen a tree so filled with myrtle
warhers (Dendroica coronata) that 1t
appeared actually as though there were
a bird for each leaf. During the mlgra-
ton period the WARRIORS do little, when
| not journeyinS, but to lisp and to eat
The bird, otherwise well hammered. Is
given to talking with Its mouth full. Tho
warblers are SO busy food gathering that
they are fearless. 1t is possible to ap-
| watch them at their labors This, OF
course applies to the warblers when
| feed In the shrubbery and in the lower
| branches of the trees. rather than to
those which prefer the topmost foliage.
Touching the matter OF the warblers'
plumage, nothing that can be said o! its
beauty can be deemed eXtravagant. Take
the blackburnlan warbler (DendroIca
blackburniae). a bird that may be seen
at this season In both city and suburb.
| There Is no hue In feathers. to one rlind
at least that in point OF brllIancy can
be compared to the throat of this gor-
geous creature The books put the color
| down as an orange yellow. but print Is
cold. FURNISHED gold Is better. and yet
does scant Justice to the beauty of the
subject. Other warblers and other bird
| families have yellow threats. but the
beauty OF the blackburnaa's feathers is
thing apart.
The sauciest OF warblers. The Maryland
! yellow throat. is with 49, This yellow
| throat. like the blackburnian, Is beauty.
| With tho other bird out OF tho question
the yellow throat might be awarded che
palm. 1t Is not hard to scrape ncquaint-
ance with this little fellow, He Is al
| ways dressed for masque ball, and as
he peers at you from out the bush where
he has taken refuge his eyes twinkle
| through tho top OF his black mask and
| You cam"
The Maryland yellow throat Is n
ground lover. 1t lnhabts the whole
northern country In summer. It Is this
beauty which occasionally builds Its nest
| In the unsavory skunk cabbage, fact
| clare that more than half believed the
birds olfactory nerves were lacking.
Possibly however. 1t Is case Of al
| things being sweet to the sweet. for tho
yellow throat is n sweet-temperei it,
tie fellow, withal his voice Is OCCASION
ally querulous. Its note sounds something
like "Witchity, witchity, witchity,"
though 1t may be translated to suit the
fancy OF the nearer, John BURROUGHS,
who Is always apt, thinks the yellow
throat politely asks the wayearer. (which
way. sir?"
| One Of tha Vaccinations ~ advanced
study of the wnrblers is the possibility that
one may stumble upon rare species.
Frank NJ, CHAPMAN touches upon this
point In his "Tcachers' Manual Of Hird
Life" Ffe says: "To the field ornltholo-
glst warblers are the most difficult as
we'll as the most fascinating birds to
study Long after the sparrows n.y.
catchers and vireos have been mastered
there will he unsolved problems among
the warblers. Some rare species win be
left to look foI-it may be q member Of
the band hitting aboIt actively In the
branches above us--and in the hope OF
finding 1t we eagerly examine bird after
bird. until our enthusiasm yields to an
aching neck
HINTS TO THE STUDENT,
Let the student, however, content HIM
self at first with the more common of
the warblers: They are With us now,
and many of them will be with us for
two weeks to come while few will Ing
er until the snow flies. The black and