Ovenbird

The Ovenbird has brownish-olive upperparts, an orange crown patch bordered by black stripes, a white eye ring, and white underparts spotted and streaked with black.

Photograph © Glenn Bartley.

Sexes similar.

None.

Fall immatures are similar to adults.

Ovenbirds inhabit mature deciduous and mixed forests.

Ovenbirds eat insects.

Photograph © Glenn Bartley.

Ovenbirds forage in leaf litter on the ground, or on fallen logs.

Ovenbirds breed across much of central and eastern Canada and the U.S., except for the southeast and south central regions. They winter from Mexico south to northern South America. The population appears to have increased in recent decades.

More information:

Bent Life History

Visit the Bent Life History for extensive additional information on the Ovenbird.

The Ovenbird often cocks its tail up above its back.

Ovenbirds are often very tame, but will raise their orange crest when agitated.

Ovenbirds males sometimes countersing, with the song of one male closely following the song of the first.

The song is a series of emphatic, two-note phrases often described as “Tea-cher, tea-cher, tea-cher.”  A high-pitched flight call is also given.

The Ovenbird’s nest is a domed, ovenlike structure of dead leaves, grass, and twigs and is lined with finer materials. It is placed on the ground, often near a trail.

Number: Usually lay 3-6 eggs.
Color: Whitish with darker markings.

Incubation and fledging:
The young hatch at about 11-14 days and fledge at about 8-10 days, though remaining dependent on the adults for some time.

Published by the Smithsonian Institution between the 1920s and the 1950s, the Bent life history series of monographs provide an often colorful description of the birds of North America. Arthur Cleveland Bent was the lead author for the series. The Bent series is a great resource and often includes quotes from early American Ornithologists, including Audubon, Townsend, Wilson, Sutton and many others.

Bent Life History for the Ovenbird – the common name and sub-species reflect the nomenclature in use at the time the description was written.

The eastern ovenbird is an inhabitant of the woodlands and, during the breeding season, is one of our commonest and one of the most interesting warblers of our hardwood and coniferous forests. Because of its loud staccato, with its crescendo ending, its somewhat mysterious and secretive habits in the underbrush and on the leaf covered floor, and because its well-concealed nest is so different from that of the other warblers, it is often one of the chief objectives of those in quest of unusual bird lore on strolls through the woods in May and June.

The names that have been applied to this bird emphasize some of the traits and markings of this most individualistic of all our warblers. The generally accepted common name, ovenbird, was adopted because of its peculiar nest that resembles a miniature Dutch oven. The song has given origin to the names teacher-bird and accentor; the peculiar vibratory motion of its tail and body when walking has suggested the names wood-wagtail,. wagtail warbler, as well as the generic name Seiurus. In Jamaica it is commonly known as the land-kickup; in Florida the natives call it the night-walker, thus calling attention to its method of locomotion by walking rather than by hopping. Its golden-brown crown mark is revealed not only in the species name auiocapitlus but also in the common name golden-crowned warbler and this marking is also coupled with other characteristics in such names as golden-crowned wagtail, golden-crowned accentor, and golden-crowned thrush.

Spring: In the spring migration the first arrivals appear on the mainland of Florida in March, single individuals have been noted during the first week, but the migration in that State extends through April to May. The average date of arrival in North Carolina, Virginia, and Washington, D. C., is April 24: 26. They reach Pennsylvania, New York, and southern New England during the first week of May, by the second week of that month they can be expected in Maine, and by the third week they reach New Brunswick and Nova Scotia, arriving in Quebec during the first week of June.

The dates of arrival in the Mississippi flyway are earlier than for the same latitudes in the east. The first individuals reach Kentucky on April 10, with extremes as early as April 3. They reach Michigan by April 27, Iowa by April 29, Minnesota by May 7, by mid-May they are in Manitoba and Alberta, and by the end of May they are at their outposts of range in Alaska.

The ovenbird arrives on its breeding grounds in the spring with great regularity, and there is much less variation in the date of arrival from year to year than is exhibited by many other birds. It appears at a certain point regardless of the weather, be it warm and summerlike, freezing, or snowing. The coming of the ovenbird is so definitely announced by its loud and easily recognized song that a factor in its apparent punctuality may be its being promptly recorded. In my own experience I more frequently hear than see the first arrivals in spring.

Harry W. Hann (1937) has clearly established by banding and careful detailed observation: that both male and female adult birds return to their old breeding grounds, if possible. Old males have a good chance of obtaining their former territory either by arriving early or by driving out the other males. Returning females have more difficulty, however, since females probably return at more nearly the same time, and there is the additional factor in their adjustment, with the male. It seems obvious, though It was not actually observed, that the female goes first to the old territory, and if the male there already has a mate, she goes to an adjoining territory. The particular male in the territory seems to be of no consequence:

With both males and females attempting to return to the same place, there would seem to be a strong tendency for the pairs to remate in subsequent years, and this happened twice with banded birds.

Courtship: The courtship of the ovenbird, a most interesting and remarkable affair, is intimafel~’ associat~d with the male’s extraordinary musical performance. One may see the birds walking casually over the leaves of the -forest floor, making scarcely a sound, then through some sudden impulsd the male starts after the female in a frantic pursuit often terminated by a wild flight, during which he pours forth a loud and eloquent love song. After this flight he returns to the forest floor to sing his ringing “teacher” notes. Morris Gibbs (1885) gives us an excellent account of this unusual courtship of a pair of birds he observed near Grand Rapids, Mich.:

Carefully crawling through the almost impenetrable growth of small saplings and brush, I came at last to a partial clearing over which a bird, apparently in the highest transports of joy, was fluttering in irregular flight. * * I observed another bird undoubtedly its mate, perched on the ground near, and which appeared to be a Golden-crowned Thrush and the centre of attraction to the delightful warbler overhead. Never had I heard the song before, and never have I witnessed such a scene. This was indeed making love with a spirit which I have never witnessed among our birds before. The song was almost continuous, and with an occasional Interruption to the new song by the common chattering notes so well known and described by Cones as a “harsh crescendo,” the notes were all of the most melodious description. The energetic unconscious fellow was meanwhile constantly flying about his inamorata, describing every form of flight except that of regular sailing; first dashing through space to the edge of the glade, which was probably twenty feet across; then rising to the tops of the bushes, he would half flutter, half fall towards his prospective mate. On a sudden he would flutter directly upward as we often see the ~nglish Sparrow or House Wren do, and on reaching a height of twenty feet or more, dash about the clearing in varying circles, ever tending in his flight toward the object of his extravagant attention. She in the meanwhile sat silent and evidently Interested in the performance. Suddenly the male dropped beside her, and alternately dashing and wheeling about, but continually on the move and always revolving about her, gave evidence of his adoration by a series of hops, dignified struts, droppings of the bead and tail, elevation of the wings and crest, which would have done credit to both the Turkey and the Ruffed Grouse. While on the ground the song was kept up with the usual vigor, but the interruption by the coarser, common notes was more frequent and the bird stopped In its struts in order to utter the notes which apparently caused him more effort than did the more beautiful song. The appearance of a third party on the scene, probably also a lover, caused the first performer to dash Into the brush much to my disappointment.

Nesting: The ovenbird nests in woodlands, usually where the underbrush and growth of shrubs and small trees is scanty, and the forest floor is open below and carpeted with old leaves. Here it lives in company with such birds as the true thrushes and the whippoorwill. The nest is generally located in open situations on the forest floor, allowing an approach to it from any direction, though at times a tree or shrub may be standing behind or at one side of it. In one case the nest was found built in the end of a large pine log and partially concealed by a growth of ferns. The majority of the nests are located alongside trails or woodland roads, or in partially cleared places where at certain times of the day the light can filter through. These open areas are probably an advantage to the birds in approaching their nests, certainly they are a convenience to the naturalist who wishes to observe or photograph them. I know of no case where the ovenbird has departed from its habit of nesting on the ground.

The typical nest is constructed of dry grasses, vegetable fibers, leaves, leaf and weed stems, rootlets and bits of bark, and moss. It is lined with finer materials, tiny rootlets and fibers, and varying amounts of hair. Sometimes the nest may be made almost exclusively of one material. T. S. Roberts (1936) describes and figures a nest made up entirely of fine bleached grasses very different from the usual leafstudded structure. In nests that I have found in the pine woods of Maine pine needles made up the bulk of the structure.

The nest is generally built in a slight depression of the ground and 15 invariably covered over; often the leaves of the leaf-bed and the branches of small, fallen, dead trees extend over the nest at the sides and back, making a roof that sheds rain as well as conceals the nest from view. Indeed the nests are so well hidden that they are difficult to find except by flushing the bird; this often occurs by accident.

Miss Cordelia Stanwood, in an unpublished account, describes a nest and a nesting site of an ovenbird near Ellsworth, Maine, as follows: “The cavity in the ground in which the nest was located was about 1 inch deep in the center. Around the edge of the excavation were maple leaves, and pine needles. The ground was swampy, covered with sphagnum moss, white birch and maple leaves, sensitive and New York ferns. The nest was located among maples and white birches adjoining some evergreens. The growth was thick overhead but open underfoot. The saucer part of the nest, level with the ground, was made of pine needles and dead leaves. It was roofed over with pine needles, dead leaves, fern, moss, stipes of ferns and bracken, and the fruit stems of maples; it was nicely lined with horsehair. Two sensitive fern fronds had grown through the nest, and the little mound of dry leaves and moss was in no wise distinguishable from its surroundings.”

The width of the nest averages about 6½ inches but the leaves and nesting materials may extend for about 9 inches. The height of the nest ranges from 41/2 to 5 inches. The cavity is small as compared to the exterior, usually measuring less than 3 inches in diameter. The opening is about 1½ inches high and 21/4 inches wide.

The female is responsible for selecting the nesting site and for building the nest. While the female is busily engaged in building, the male lends moral encouragement by singing; he guards the territory and gives the alarm whenever an intruder appears. He seldom visits the nest during the course of construction but is a constant attendant and hssists in feeding the young after they appear. According to H. W. Hann (1937):

The female clears the leaves from a circular spot, by pushing them back, raising up the edges, and perhaps removing some. She then, in some cases, digs up the ground, leaving fresh soil on the surface, and may remove some soil or push It aside.. * * * Nesting material is then carried and placed around the edge of the hole, chiefly on the back side, and the covering is extended over the top. The work is done almost entirely from the inside, but evidently a few leaves are placed on top and arranged from the outside. * The last material to be added to the nest Is the hair, and the presence of this indicates a finished nest. The hair is often added a day or more after the remainder is finished, and doubtless causes the female considerable searching.

Ovenbirds will sometimes desert their nest when disturbed, especially at the time when the nest is under construction or the eggs in the early stages of incubation. 1-Jowever, in correspondence received from Dr. Paul Harrington, he reports flushing a bird from a nest at Birch Point, Toronto, in which the whole dome or top had been torn off (probably by cattle) and carried about 10 feet away. The bird continued incubation apparently unconcerned by its exposed condition.

Eggs: The eggs are laid during the morning, often before sunrise, 1 to 3 days after the nest is completed. Under normal conditions an egg is laid each day until the set is completed. The number in complete sets varies from 3 to 6 eggs. In 36 nests not disturbed by cowbirds, J. P. Norris (1892) reported 6 with 3 eggs, 13 with 4, 16 with 5, and 1 with 6, an average of slightly more than 4 eggs per set. Hann (1937) in a series of 27 nests in which the eggs were checked as laid there were 2 nests with 3 eggs, 6 with 4, 18 with 5, and 1 with 6, an average of about 5 eggs per nest. If the first attempt at nesting is a failure the second set of eggs is generally smaller in number than the first. Normally the ovenbird does not rear two broods during any one season.

The eggs have a white, slightly glossed ground color speckled and spotted with hazel, lilac-gray, and reddish-brown. In the majority of the eggs the markings form a wreath about the larger end. A series of 50 eggs had an average length of 20.2 millimeters, the extremes being 18.6 and 23.2 millimeters, and an average short diameter of 15.5 millimeters, the extremes being 14.3 and 16.7 millimeters.

Incubation: Incubation is done entirely by the female and begins the day after the last egg is laid, regardless of the size of the clutch. When incubating, the bird sits with her side parallel to the opening of the nest, her tail bent over her back and usually toward the front of the nest. She changes her position many times during the course of the day, placing her head in the opposite direction, but the axis of her body is always in the same relative position. She exhibits considerable nervousness when about to leave the nest and on leaving does not fly but walks a considerable distance over the forest floor be~ fore taking flight.

The ovenbird does not flush from her nest readily, and when walking through the woods I have unwittingly trampled on the edge of the nest before she fluttered out. At this time the bird gave a splendid exhibition of feigned injury; she struggled seemingly helpless along the ground with her wings and tail lowered and the feathers of her crown and back uplifted in an attitude of dire distre.ss. After leading me away for a distance of about 50 feet she arose and flew away triumphantly.

The female during the period of incubation leaves the nest voluntarily for feeding from five to a dozen times during the course of the day; spending from 8 to 17 percent of the total time away from the nest. The first trip occurs soon after daylight, and the lightest incubation is from that time until noon. Late in the evening there is a tendency for her to leave again before settling down for the night. It was found that the time off during the day was roughly proportional to daily temperature changes. In a nest which I had under daily observation at Yorktown Heights, N. Y. I saw the male bird deliver several green larvae to. the female while she was on the nest incubating the eggs, but this is not of common occurrence as far as I have been able to determine.

The incubation period of two nests studied in Maine was 12 days. The exact incubation period of 76 eggs in 21 Michigan nests was determined by Hann (1937). He found the time ranged from 11 days and 12 hours to 14 days, with an average of 12 days and 5.6 hours. He states that all the eggs of a clutch including the last had about the same incubation period, and any variation of more than a few hours usually concerned all. He found no difference in incubation time with respect to warm or cool weather.

The eggs may hatch at any time during the day but rarely at night. They are pipped on the day before hatching. The shell cracks at right angles to the long axis of the egg before the shell opens to allow the young to emerge.

Young: The young at the time of hatching have their eyes sealed shut but they readily respond to sounds as soon as they emerge from the egg. When extending their heads and opening their large mouths they seem to balance themselves by their wing tips and sprawled-out legs. Between feeding the young are brooded by the female, and at this time she is very reluctant to leave the nest, even allowing a person to stroke her feathers.

The male assists in the feeding of the young at the very start, in fact he may be seen at the nest even before the young have emerged, ~n apparent anticipation of his domestic role soon to follow. The adults walk to the nest in bringing food, usually along well-established routes and runways which in part are concealed from view. They often stop with food in their beaks, when near the nest, and carefully scrutinize the surroundings as if to make sure they are not being spied upon by some intruder. The male, at least at first, seems to be more wary and cautious in this respect than the female when approaching the nest.

By the second day the young reach toward the opening of the nest in soliciting food. At 4 days the eyes of the young are slightly open and the edges of the gapes have assumed a more pronounced yellow. The feather papillae in the various feather tracts show prominently. The young are much more active and move themselves about the nest more readily with the aid of their rapidly growing legs. They are also quicker in responding to the parents arriving with food. Excrement is voided by turning the rear of the body toward the opening of the nest. During the first day or two the excrement is eaten by the adult birds but as the young become older more and more of it is carried away to be dropped at a considerable distance from the nest.

By the fourth day the number of feedings required of the adults has greatly increased over those of the first day. As the young grow older it is not unusual for the adults to exceed a hundred visits to the nest with food in a single day.

The eyes are completely opened by the fifth day, and from then on the young are not easily deceived by false noises or those not concerned with the arrival of food.

After 6 days of nest life the young may be seen going through exercises, stretching their wings to gain strength and, perhaps, partly to relieve an uncomfortable feeling produced by the rapidly growing parts and feathers. They preen themselves a great deal and peck at the bases of the fepthers to assist in the unsheathing process. By this time their temperature control has developed suiliciently so that there is less need of brooding by the parents.

By the eighth day the primaries are unsheathed for about threefourths of their length and the feathers of the other tracts have proceeded to such an extent that the juvenal plumage is well established, giving a more pleasing contour to the young. There is now great competition among members of the brood when the parents arrive with food, and they utter a kind of buzzing call in concert as they stretch their necks and extend their gaping mouths out of the opening of the nest. Sometimes the young may leave the nest at this age, but in some nests I have had under observation they remained a day or two longer.

In leaving the nest the young hop out one at a time, and considerable time generally elapses before all have departed. When a nestling leaves it follows one of the adult birds, and those left behind are cared for by the mate. The parent bird leads the youngster, coaxing it along now and then with food and offering encouragement by responding to its peeps and chirps. Finally each parent goes its own way with its part of the brood, and thus nest life comes to a successful ending. Under favorable conditions young birds, especially those attended by the males, may remain in practically the same territory f or several days after leaving the nest.

As soon as the feathers of the wings have completed their growth the young are able to fly when flushed. They usually alight on the ground but sometimes they are able to negotiate a landing and maintain a hold on a shrub or lower limb of a tree. After the young are S weeks old they are able to secure their own fcod although it is still supplemented by the parent birds. When the young are about 5 weeks old they are abandoned by the adults and from then on are on their own. By the time they have undergone the partial postnuptial molt and have acquired their so-called first winter plumage they are physically fit to migrate. The adults generally disappear from the woods as soon as the young can care for themselves.

Polyandry: Ordinarily the male and female ovenbirds have single mates but H. W. Hann (1937) cites a case where one male had two mates at the same time, and another in which a female copulated with two neighboring males in her own territory, then later visited a neighboring male in his territory during her incubation period. In a later paper Hann (1940) records an observation in which two males as well as the female were carrying food to the young in the nest. After these complicated relations were noted a third male, not banded, appeared on the scene. He repeatedly came near the nest, although chased by the other males. His intent seemed centered chiefly in the female, as he was not seen to feed the young, and apparently, according to Mr. Hann, he was successful in some of his attempts at copulation. Hence this female had three mates, although the third might well be considered an interloper. When the young left the nest the two banded males took charge of one young each and the female cared for the other three,~ No one else has made such an intensive study of the family interrelationships of the ovenbird as has Mr. Hann, with the aid of marking and banding the individuals. Polyandrous matings may be more common than has been supposed among species, such as the ovenbird, that we have always thought to be monogamous.

Plumages: [AUTHOR’S NOTE: According to Dr. Dwight (1900), the natal down is “pale sepia brown.”

He describes the juvenal plumage, which is partially acquired in the nest, as follows: “Above, including sides of head, cinnamon-brown, sparingly spotted with olive-brown, the dusky lateral stripes faintly indicated on the crown. Wings and tail olive-brown with olive-green edgings, the coverts slightly tipped with pale cinnamon. Below, pale cinnamon, yellowish white on abdomen and crissum, faintly spotted or streaked on the sides of the chin, on the breast and on the sides with olive-brown.”

The first winter plumage is “acquired by a partial postjuvenal moult, beginning by the end of June, which involves the body plumage, the wing coverts, and rarely the tertiaries, but not the rest of the wings nor the tail. Young and old become practically indistinguishable.” This plumage is similar to the well-known adult spring plumage, except for brownish edgings on the crown, and faint huffy or yellowish tinges on the under parts, the dark stripes being partially veiled with white edgings.

The first and subsequent nuptial plumages are acquired by wear, which removes the light edgings and brightens the plumage.

A complete postnuptial molt for both young and old birds occurs in July.]

Food: No comprehensive study has thus far been made of t.he food of the ovenbird. Unlike most of the warbiers, this bird is terrestrial in its habits; instead of gleaning its food from the trunks, limbs, and leaves of trees, it rustles about on the ground turning over leaves to scan the leaf mold of the forest floor, where it finds snails, slugs, myriapods, and earthworms as well as the weevils, beetles, aphids, crickets, ants, and spiders which comprise a large proportion of its food. It is also known to feed on moths and caterpillars and more rarely it may catch flying insects on the wing. It takes a few seeds and small wild fruits but these represent. only a little more than onefiftieth of its entire food. In Florida, ovenbirds have been reported as feeding on the red mulberry. In certain sections of its range it feeds freely on grasshoppers and locusts. Junius Henderson (1934) quotes Aughey as finding an average of 18 locusts in each of 6 stomachs of the ovenbird collected in Nebraska. He adds there was an average of 15 kinds of other insects present in each of the stomachs.

Sylvester D. Judd (1900) examined the stomachs of 3 half-grown ovenbird nestlings which contained “beetles of the family Lampyridae and click beetles, caterpillars, moths, spiders and snails.”

In watching birds at the nest from a blind, practically all of the food I saw fed to the young during the first 3 days consisted of various small green and brown larvae. After that time I saw the adults bring spiders, snails, earthworms, centipedes, and a number of winged insects such as flies, moths, beetles, and ants to feed to their young.

Miss Cordelia Stanwood saw young ovenbirds feeding on mosquitoes at Ellsworth, Maine. In her notes she writes: “As I started for home, the female crossed my path, and a young bird followed. As I neared the youngster, he stopped to snap up a mosquito. I knelt slowly and held a mosquito, on the tip of my finger to the little fellow. After hesitating once or twice, he snapped it up. Then I put my hand flat on the ground and let the mosquitoes bite. He walked over to my hand, snapping up mosquitoes for a long time. At last he followed a mosquito across the path, and in answer to the chirps of the parent birds wandered in their direction.” Miss Stanwood has also observed the young catching black flies.

Dr. Alexander Wetmore (1916) reports on the examinations of the contents of 13 stomachs of ovenbirds collected in Puerto Rico during the months from December to April, inclusive. The animal food of these birds amounted to 62.43 percent and the vegetable material 37.57 percent. He presents further details as follows:

In all of these stomachs were considerable quantities of gravel, and all animal matter was ground very fine. Weevil remains (4.S percent) were present in four stomachs taken in April. Other beetle remains (9.68 percent) in eight stomachs were so finely ground that they could not be determined. Ants were eaten by eight birds and form the large amount of 8.5 percent. Other Hymenoptera made up only 0.4 percent. Orthopterous remains (2.17 percent) Include a walking stick, a grasshopper, and others. A caterpillar (0.5 percent) was found in one stomach and spiders (2.33 percent) in three. Snails, In most instances broken up in very small pieces, were eaten by eight birds and amount to 30.17 percent. A single tree toad comprises 0.93 percent and miscellaneous animal matter 3 percent.

The oven-bird is wholly beneficial In its food habits and is remarkable for the large number of ants eaten, as well as many weevils and other beetles. Snails are much relished, and form nearly half the animal food.

Of the vegetable matter contained In these stomachs 36.9 percent was composed of seeds and 0.67 percent may be classed as rubbish. The oven-bird has a strong, muscular gizzard and takes large Quantities of sand, so that the seeds are broken and ground until they are fit for digestion. None are of economic value.

Voice: The ovenbird has the reputation of being the noisiest and least musical member of the warbler group. Its arrival in the spring is made known to us by its loud, clear, sharply accented calls. It generally keeps well concealed in the dense cover of the woodlands and its voice is fiequently heard when we may not discover the singer. The song is a ringing crescendo chant which Burroughs has aptly described as TNAcRER, TEACHER, TEACHER, TEACHER”, an interpretation that will definitely distinguish it from that of any other bird. It has been a question whether the first or the second syllable is accented, but now this accent is known to vary.

The call song commonly heard during the nesting season may be termed the territory song, for it is an announcement of the singer’s presence to all other birds and a warning to all trespassers. During mating it is often a challenge and may sometimes serve as a battle cry when a rival appears. The birds sing regularly in definite localities and seldom wander, evidently having definite singing trees and territory. The song can be heard throughout the period of incubation, but in my experience it practically ceases after the feeding of the young demands the full attention of both parents. In Maine it is seldom heard after the middle of July. A second period of singing occurs in August or early September but the song at that time is transient and most irregular. In this supplementary period the song is to be heard for only a few days, in the early morning hours, and never reaches the precision and vigor of the true spring song.

In correspondence from Aretas A. Saunders, he states: “The terdtory song consists of 2-note phrases, 6 to 12, and averaging S. In each 2-note phrase one is longer than the other, and both are commonly a tone apart in pitch. Each succeeding phrase is slightly louder than the preceding one so that the song is a crescendo throughout. In my 24 records there are varions variations from the normal. A few songs vary only a half-tone in pitch, and a few more a tone and a half. Two songs change in pitch in the middle of the song, finishing with phrases a tone higher than those at the beginning. Two songs begin with single notes and end with 2-note phrases, while one begins with 2-note phrases and ends with single notes.

“The pitch ranges one octave, from C sharp “‘ to C sharp “”. One bird whose song I recorded sang two different songs, the lower one reaching C sharp “‘ and the higher C sharp “”. The song lasted from 1~ to 31/s seconds. There is some variation between individuals in the rapidity of singing, some singing about three 2-note phrases per second and others about four. The accented note in the phrases may be either higher or lower in pitch than the unaccented, and my records are about equaly divided in this matter.”

Albert R. Brand (1936) has analyzed the songs of birds, including the ovenbird, through a detailed study of film recordings. He writes:

The speed of bird song was found to be extremely rapid. Many songs that seemed to consist of only a few notes actually contain four or five times as many as the ear can detect, and, in several cases, songs that are assumed to be. divided: that is they seem to be made up of several notes: under the miQroscope were found to be continuous: only one note.

Such was the case of the oven-bird film studied. This song certainly sounds to me, and I imagine to others, as If It consists of a number of separate notes, If not phrases. It is often written, T~ACgEB. TEACHaR, ‘rEAcHER, TEACHER, each “teacher” representing one phase or group of notes. But on the film the story Is different. The film tells us that this song, which to our ear seeme to be made up of a number of phrases, each of which in turn consists of one note that is changing constantly in pitch, is really a continuous note. However, the pitch ~a constantly changing; on that point the ear Is correct. * * The change after the downward movement of the note (flatting) into the higher portion of the song probably causes one to assume that the song Is a series of notes, which It certainly Is not. Many notes In bird-song were found to be of Incredibly short duration, sometimes as short as a hundredth of a second, and the pauses between the notes are even shorter, occasionally only a fraction of that time. It is physically impossible for the ear to distinguish such short notes and intervals; it Is no wonder that until the microscopic film studies were made these very short notes had not even been suspected.

In his study of vibration frequencies of passerine bird songs Brand (1938) found that the vibrations per second of the highest note of the ovenbird was 5,850, the lowest 3,300, and the approximate mean about 4,000.

Apparently this song is not peculiar to the male, for Robert W. Hiatt (1943) states that he collected an ovenbird, that was singing as it walked among fallen leaves and branches, which proved to be a female. ‘Whether it is of common occurrence for the female ovenbird to sing is not known, since the sex is difficult to determine without dissection. Better to leave such an academic question unsolved than to collect singing ovenbirds solely for such a purpose! Jn addition to the ordinary song, the ovenbird has another song, much more musical and beautiful, generally sung during flight and frequently referred to as the flight song. It is not heard until about 10 days or 2 weeks after the bird’s arrival in the spring, it continues through the nesting season, and it normally ceases by the time the ordinary or territory song is no longer heard, although occasionally it has been heard long after the nesting season.

Aretas A. Saunders states: “The flight song is much more variable than the territory song. It is longer, has a greater range in pitch, is sweeter and more musical in quality, and is heard more commonly later in the season. It is often heard in the dusk of evening and I have heard it ona dark night at about 2 a. m.

“I have 15 records of this song. In pitch they range from F sharp “‘ to E””. Individual songs have a range from two and onehalf to five tones, averaging about three. They occupy from 24A to 4% seconds.

“One can say very little about the form of this song, it varies so greatly. Warbles, 2- and 3-note phrases, slurs, single notes, and twitters are mixed together in various ways. The pitch rises or falls wit.h no regularity. All but 3 of my records have a pause in the middle of the song, 1 record has two such pauses; and 11 contain a few repeated 2-note phrases, like a portion of the territory song, but 4 have no such phrases.

“The bird sings this song in horizontal flight, often above the tops of the forest trees, but sometimes flying through the trees, only 15 or 20 feet above the ground. When a song over the treetop is finished the bird turns about, drops lower and flies back to the starting point through the. trees.”

The flight song is so truly remarkable that it seems well worth while to present the interpretations of other observers : E. P. Bicknell (1884) writes: “On occasions, as if sudden emotion carried it beyond the restrictions that ordinarily beset its expression, it bursts forth with a wild outpouring of intricate and melodious song, proving itself the superior vocalist of the trio of pseudo-Thrushes of which it is so unassuming a member. This song is produced on the wing, oftenest when the spell of evening is coming over the woods. Sometimes it may be heard as an outburst of vesper melody carried above the foliage of the shadowy forest and descending and dying away with the waning twilight.”

Lynds Jones (1900) has called this song of the ovenbird the passion song, which he defines: “It is an outburst of melody of such richness and fullness, such thrilling ecstasy, that the signer is lifted into the air on quivering wings to pour out his melody without a pause until the inspiration has passed. * * * I have seen the ovenbird suddenly vault into the air, mounting to the tree tops on quivering wings, then dart back and forth in a zigzag course swift as an arrow, and finally burst into song as he floated gently down. * * Sometimes the ovenbird closes his passion song with a burst of the perfect call (territory) uong.”

H. E. Tuttle (1919) in writing of the night performance of the flight song of the ovenbird states:

His songs of the noon hour are but jingling alliterations besides the flood of ecstasy that he pours forth above the tree tops in the dark of night. * * * When the starlit nights are warm with the promise of June, then may you hear the first glad upward rush of that far-flung torrent of poetry. Mounting with hurried gladness, as If he feared some surcease of delight, he gains the open sky, spilling the gay notes earthward in his wake, like the tumbling drops of a mountain waterfaii. While the last hurst of warbled rapture haunts the still air of night, he has sheered into a swift desoent, with perhaps a murmured snatch of the refrain, uttered regretfuily, as if Lethe had overtaken the singer and hushed the gay chords whilst they trembled from his heart. * * *

Sometimes, even when the sun Is high, he falls into a reverie, perched on a horizontal bough above the glade, then, rareiy, and but for a moment, as if in a day-dream, the lyric gift Is restored. He darts from his perch like a mad thing, and whips through the woods with incredible speed, singing wildly his ffight song with all the abandon of a Bacchante, till, as snddeniy, he comes to rest upon the branch from which he started, dozes a space, and wakes to walk quietly the length of his perch, returning to the earth as if quite unconscious of what has occurred.

In addition to these songs the ovenbird has an alarm note which is a loud “tzick” and on certain occasions utters a softer higher pitched “tseet.” Miss Cordelia J. Stanwood describes the calls uttered by the ovenbird when disturbed at the nest as “cheAt chip! 8pt2! sptz/ aptz! sptz!” and that of a bird suddenly surprised as “chip-ip-ip-ip.”

Enemies: The ovenbird, as in the case of other ground nesting birds of the forest, suffers from the depredations of snakes, squirrels, skunks, weasels, and other prowlers. William Brewster (1936) gives us a very graphic account of ovenbirds and a black snake which he observed on June 21, 1886, as follows:

A low but unusual chirping attracted my attention. The sound steadily became more distinct and its authors: for there were evidently severai: were plainly advancing toward me. I soon made out they were Oven Birds and that they were on or near the ground, which although free from underbrush was nevertheless ~vell shaded by an abundant growth of sarsaparilla.

Finally the dry ieaves began to rustle and the sarsaparilla stems to wave directly in front of my position and the next moment a black snake about three feet long emerged into an opening, gliding swiftly and in a perfectly direct course. On each side of the slightly raised head and within less than two feet of it, walked a pair of Oven Birds, their bills open and panting, their wings slightly raised and quivering so rapidly as to produce a hazy appearance above their bodies. They kept their distance exactly and, when the snake stopped they stopped also, apparently not looking at him but facing directly ahead. They were also seemingly ignored by the snake, although he doubtless kept a not less keen side watch on them than they did on him. The entire group, which finally halted within less than ten yards of me, presented a remarkable, not to say ludicrous spectacle and at once suggested the idea that birds were in trained attendance on the snake: a well-drilled escort, as It were, to guide or guard him during his morning crawl. I ended what was likely enough to prove a tragedy to the birds by shooting the snake.

H. W. Hann (1937) reports that a pair of adult ovenbirds exhibited great concern and were annoyed by two barred owls which were in the vicinity of a nest. An owl feather found near a freshly destroyed nest was evidence of this predator. Mr. Hann also gives an account of the red squirrel in relation to nesting ovenbirds as follows:

The loss of many eggs and young was attributed to the red squirrel. In a number of cases a part of the contents of a nest disappeared, and later the remainder was taken at one or more visits. At one nest, three out of four eggs disappeared just before noon, and I decided to watch for the robber to return. I remained until dark, and returned early the next morning. About 6: 00 a. in. a red squirrel came to the nest, got the remaining egg and started off with it. When I approached, It ran up a tree and ate the egg, holding it In its paws as It ate. At another nest which contained a Cowbird nearly ready to leave, a red squirrel suddenly appeared on a tree, head downward, Just above the nest. It hesitated a moment until the cowbird gave the food call, then seized it by the head and ran away with It. Red squirrels evidently discover nests by accident, as they run about looking for food. The Oven-birds often chase them away from the vicinity of nests, or the loss would be greater.

Mr. Hann also found evidence that gray squirrels and possibly that skunks and raccoons had destroyed nests he had under observation.

Miss Cordelia Stanwood found a nest of the ovenbird in which one egg had been sucked, and the other. was so smeared with the albumen of the first as to be very sticky. Several hairs of a weasel glued to the egg gave evidence of the predator.

There are numerous reports that many ovenbirds are killed by striking lighthouses and towers during their migration. The light keeper at Fowey Rocks, Fla., reported to NV. W. Cooke (1904) that he could have filled a mail bag wit.h ovenbirds that struck the lighthouse on October 10 and 11, 1891.

Harold S. Peters (1936) has found five species of external parasites infesting the bodies and plumage of ovenbirds as follows: two lice, Menaca’ntku8 ckrysopkaeu?m (Kellogg) and Mymidea incerta (Kellogg); two ticks, Haemaphysalis leporispalustris Packard and Ixodes brwn’neus Koch; and the mite Liponyssus sy~viarwm (Canestrini and Fauzago).

Since the ovenbird is a bird of the forests and builds a nest covered over and well concealed, it would not be expected to be greatly molested by the cowbird, yet it is quite commonly parasitized in certain sections of its range. In Iowa, Lynds Jones (1888) states that every nest of the ovenbird he found at Grinnell contained two or more cowbird’s eggs. Isaac E. Hess (1910) found an ovenbird’s nest in central Illinois with seven eggs of the cowbird and none of the rightful owner. J. P. Norris (1892) in a series of 40 nests taken in the east chiefly from Maine to North Carolina reported 4 nests, 3 from Pennsylvania and 1 from Connecticut, which contained cowbird’s eggs.

In Ohio, Lawrence E. Hicks (1934) found 41 nests out of 112, or 36 percent, parasitized by the cowbird. According to Sage, Bishop, and Bliss (1913) 11 outof 30, or nearly 37 percent, of the nests found in Connecticut contained eggs of the cowbird. H. W. Hann (1937) reports that 52 percent of those he found in southern Michigan were parasitized. Herbert Friedmaun (1929) had over 150 records of parasitized ovenbirds’ nests ranging from southern New England, New York, Pennsylvania and west to Illinois, Minnesota, and Iowa. In contrast it is interesting to note that of 15 ovenbirds’ nests I have seen, and of many others reported in Maine, not one contained cowbird’s eggs. Although the cowbird is an abundant bird in that State the ovenbird seems to be comparatively free from molestation in this part of New England.

According to Hann (1937) the cowbird lays early in the morning before the ovenbirds lay and requires only 40 to 60 seconds to deposit the egg. In 13 cases an egg of the ovenbird was removed by the cowbird before the latter deposited an egg, and the number of eggs thus removed was 75 percent of the number of cowbirds’ eggs laid. The ovenbird seems to make no attempt to remove the cowbird eggs. The incubation of the cowbird’s eggs averaged 11.6 days which is 0.6 of a day less than the average period of the ovenbird. Young ovenbirds in parasitized nests grew approximately as well as those in non-parasitized nests, so that the chief loss to the ovenbird was in the removal by the cowbird of an estimated 18 percent of the total number of eggs laid by the parasitized ovenbirds. However, the survival rate of the cowbirds was low, since out of 40 cowbird’s eggs laid, only 22 hatched, 10 birds left the nest, and probably not more than 5 left the woods.

Fall: Early in August ovenbirds are to be seen just south of their breeding range, indicating that the autumn migration has started. The earliest recorded dates for the Carolinas are in the first week of August. They reach southern Florida by August 20 and by the end of August the first fall migrants arrive in Cuba and Puerto Rico. The bulk of the individuals do not pass over this route until a month later. From mid-September to mid-October waves of these warblers are to be seen passing through and leaving the Florida Peninsula.

The las&individuals leave Manitoba, Ontario, New Brunswick, and other sections of these parts of the northern nesting range by the last week of September. In the northern States of the Middle West and in New England they leave by the first week of October, but some linger as late as November. The last ones are generally seen in Kentucky, Virginia, and the Carolinas during the last week of October, a few are known to winter in South Carolina. From this latitude south to Florida and the Gulf States it is difficult to determine the date when the last birds leave this region for the islands of the 1tVest Indies or via Mexico and points south. Likewise the arrival dates in the spring are confused because of the presence of wintering individuals.

Winter: The normal winter range of the ovenbird extends from Louisiana eastward through the Gulf States to South Carolina and southward to the West Indies, where it is widely distributed throughout the larger islands, and to the Lesser Antilles, where it has been recorded in many of the islands. It is found throughout the Bahamas. In Mexico its winter range extends from Mazat1~n on the Pacific coast, south through Central America to Colombia, South America. It is remarkable that the ovenbird is found as far west in Mexico as MazatlAn as it is a bird of the eastern United States and it is unusual for such birds to move westward, for generally the migration routes extend south or southeastward. Birds wintering in that section of Mexico are those which usually come by the Pacific flyway.

There are records of the ovenbird wintering or attempting to winter as far north as New England. For example J. L. Bagg (1941) found an ovenbird at Montague, Mass., where it regularly visited a feeding shelf, from December 17, 1940, to January 30, 1941, but adds that it may have perished in the subzero night of January 30.

In correspondence received from Alexander Skutch it is stated that the ovenbird is widely distributed on both the Caribbean and Pacific sides of Guatemala and Costa Rica, in midwinter from sea level up to an altitude of 3,000 feet or more. “At this season,” Dr. Skutch writes, “it is always alone, and is most often seen walking in its usual deliberate manner over fairly open ground beneath a second-growth thicket, or in a shady plantation. I have not encountered it in the forest. It is typically silent, and I have not heard its song in Central America. It has not been recorded before the first week of October; but it lingers through most of April, and at times well into May.”

In Puerto Rico Alexander Wetmore (1916) states: “The oven birds frequent thickets and second-growth forests many times in dry locations. Here they feed on the ground, flying up to low perches when alarmed. They were entirely silent. In coastal regions they are frequently seen in cane fields.” In Haiti and the Dominican Republic Wetmore and Swales (1931) state: “The oven-bird is found in thickets and scrubs in both humid and arid sections, where it walks about on the ground in search for food, and though not conspicuous it is not so shy as it is in its northern breeding ground.”

In Florida, A. H. Howell (1932) writes: “Never particularly shy, during their winter sojourn the birds often become so tame as to come to a doorstep to pick up crumbs, * * * and once almost walked over my shoes as I sat quietly.”

DISTRIBUTION
Range: Canada to northern South America.

Breeding range: T he ovenbird breeds north to northeastern British Columbia (Fort Nelson and Fort St. JoIm); central southern Mackenzie (probably Fort Resolution); central Saskatchewan (Pelican Narrows and Cumberland House); southern Manitoba (Aweme, Fairfield, and Family Lake) ; central Ontario (Lac Seul, Port Arthur, Amyot, Kapuskasing, and probably Moose Factory) ; southern Quebec (Mistassini Post, Lake St. John, Godbout, and Anticosti Island) ; and southern Newfoundland (Tompkins and probably the Avalon Peninsula). East to southern Newfoundland (probably the Avalon Peninsula); Prince Edward Island; Nova Scotia (Cape Breton and Baddeck); and the Atlantic Coast States south to northern Georgia (Rising Fawn, Atlanta, and Kirkwood). South to northern Georgia (Atlanta); northern Alabama (Florence, Monte Sano, and Anniston); southwestern Tennessee (Fayette County); northwestern Arkansas (Winslow, Magazine Mountain, London, and Clinton); eastern Oklahoma (MeCurtain County); and probably eastern Colorado (Holly and Colorado Springs). West to Colorado (Colorado Springs, Denver); western South Dakota (Short Pine Hills and Black Hills) ; southeastern Montana (Miles City, Ekalaka, Long Pine Hills); southern Saskatchewan (Muscow and probably Davidson); and central Alberta (Grand Prairie, Glenevis, and Athabaska); and northeastern British Columbia (Fort Nelson).

Winter range: The ovenbird winters north to northeastern Mexico (Monterrey and Matamoros); southern Louisiana (Avery Island); southern Georgia (Fitzgerald) ; and southern South Carolina (Mount Pleasant). East to South Carolina (Mount Pleasant); north-central Florida (Gainesville and Magnolia) ; throughout the Greater Antilles (Cuba, Jamaica, Hispaniola, and Puerto Rico); to the Bahamas and Lesser Antilles (Virgin Islands, Anguilla, Antigua, Guadeloupe, Dorninica, and Martinique). South to the Lesser Antilles (Martinique) and northern Venezuela (Paraguana Peninsula). West to northern Venezuela (Paraguana Peninsula); northern Colombia (La Bonda); Panama (Divala, Gatiin, and Darien); Cost Rica; El Salvador; Guatemala (Mazatenango); Quintana Roo (Mujeres and Cozumel Islands); Yucat~in (M6rida, Silan, and Chich~n-Itz~); central Veracruz (El Conejo and Tres Zapotes); and northeastern Mexico (Matamoros).

Casual records include specimens taken or observed in southwestern Wyoming, southwestern Colorado (Durango), California (Farallon Islands, Glendale, and Lavic), Greenland (Narssag and Nanortalik), and Bermuda.

The species as outlined is divided into three subspecies, or geographic races. The eastern ovenbird (S. a. auro capillu8) breeds from northeastern British Columbia to Prince Edward Island and Nova Scotia, south to northern Georgia, and west to Colorado; the Newfoundland ovenbird (S. a. furvior), as far as is known, breeds only in the southern two-thirds of Newfoundland; while the gray ovenbird (S. a. cinereus) breeds in southern Alberta, southeastern Montana, western South Dakota, and south to central and southeastern Colorado.

Migration: Late dates of spring departure from the winter home are: Venezuela: Rancho Grande near Maracay, Aragua, April 22. Panam~: Chiriqui, April 15. Costa Rica: Basin of El General, May 14. Nicaragua: Escondido River, May 6. Guatemala: Nebaj, May 3. Nayarit: Madre Island, May 16. Virgin Islands: Kingshill, St. Croix, April 18. Puerto Rico: Mayagiiez, April 25. Haiti: lie ~ Vache, April 30; lIe de Ia Gon~ve, May 18. Cuba: Santiago de las Vegas, April 26; average of five years at Habana, April 19. Bahamas: Cay Lobos Light, May 13. Florida: Dry Tortugas Island, May 22; Fort Myers, May 29. Alabama: Decatur, May 15. Georgia: Darien, May 20. Louisiana: University, May 16. Mississlppi: Gulfport, Ma.y 17.

Early dates of spring arrival are: Florida: Pensacola, April 5. Alabama: Long Island, April 8. Georgia: Athens, April 3. South Carolina: Clemson College, April 13. North Carolina: Raleigh, March 29 (average of 19 years, April 13). Virginia: Lawrenceville, April 6; Rockbridge County, April 20. West Virgiiiia: Bluefield and French Creek, April 22 (average of 16 years at French Creek, April 26). District of Columbia: Washington, April 10 (average of 44 years, April 23). Maryland: Baltimore County, April 9. Delaware: Kent and Sussex Counties, March 27 (average of 18 years, April 9). Pennsylvania: Harrisburg, April 12 (average of 12 years at Philadelphia, April 25). New Jersey: Milltown, April 22. New York: Oneida County, April 13; Bronx, April 15. Connecticut: New Britain, April 24. Rhode Island: Kingston, April 30. Massachusetts: Springfield, April 20. Vermont: St. Johnsbury, April 24. New Hampshire: East Westmoreland, May 2. Maine: Lewiston, April 23; Westbrook, May 1. Quebec: Montreal, April 26. New Brunswick: Bathhurst, May 12. Nova Scotia: Halifax and Wolfvllle, May 17. Prince Edward Island: North River, May 19. Newfoundland: Tompkins, May 19. Louisiana: Grand Isle, April 4. Mississippi: Gulf coast, March 31. Arkansas: Winslow, April 7. Tennessee: Memphis, March 31; Nashville: April 1 (average of 13 years, April 15). Kentucky: Bowling Green, April 8. Missouri: St. Louis, April 11. Illinois: Chicago region, April 6 (average May 4). Indiana: Indianapolis, March 31; West Lafayette, April 1. Ohio: Wooster, April 4; average of 19 years at Oberlin, April 27. Michigan: Grand Rapids, April 13; Sault Ste. Marie, April 28. Ontario: London, April 27; Ottawa, May 10 (average of 13 years, May 16). Iowa: Ogden, April 24. Wisconsin: Madison, April 1 (average of 15 years in Dane County, May 1); Superior, April 25. Minnesota: Lanesboro, April 27 (average of 34 years for southern Minnesota, May 7; Duluth, May 4. Texas: Cove, April 1. Oklahoma: Tulsa County, April 6. Kansas: Ottawa, April 21. Nebraska: Peru, April 17. South Dakota: Vermilion, May 5. North Dakota: Wahpeton, May 7. Manitoba: Margaret, April 25. Saskatchewan: Skull Creek, May 15; Fort MeMurray, May 28. Colorado-Durango, May 12; Fort Morgan, May 12. Wyoming: Camp Sheridan, May 17. Montana: Miles City, May 18. Alberta: Glenevis, May 11. California: Amboy and Los Olivos, May 13. Alaska: Kenai Peninsula and Nulato, May 30.

Late dates of fall departure are: Alaska: Kensi Peninsula, July 15. Yukon: Lebarge, July 14. British Columbia: Muskwa, July 18. California: Glendale, October 25. Montana: Hell Gate, August 26. Colorado-Mount Morrison, August 28. New Mexico-Dona Ana County, October 13. Alberta: Glenevis, September 14. Saskatchewan: Regina, September 14. Manitoba: Aweme, September 28 (average September 15); Winnipeg, October 2. North Dakota: Cass County, September 26 (average September 20); Fargo, October 4. South Dakota: Faulkton, October 5. Texas: Cove, November 19. Minnesota: Lanesboro and Minneapolis, October 16 (average of 9 years in southern Minnesota, September 23). Wisconsin: Superior, October 23. Iowa: Wall Lake, October 26. Ontario: Ottawa, October 15. Michigan-Grand Rapids, October 18. Ohio: .Jerusalem Township, November 9; central Ohio, October 16 (average October 2). Indiana: Richmond, October 20. Illinois: Chicago region, October 19 (average October 2); Urbana, October 24. Missouri: Noel, November 1. Kentucky: Danville, October 14. Tennessee: Memphis and Nashville, October 15. Arkansas-Amity, October 10. Mississippi: Gulf coast, November 1. Louisiana: St. Francisville, October 17. Greenland: Narssaq (near Godthaab), October 15. Newfoundland-Cape Anguille, October 3. New Brunswick: Grand Manan, September 16. Quebec: Montreal, September 25. Maine: South Portland, October 22. New Hampshire: Water Village, October 28. Vermont: Rutland, October 11. Massachusetts: Boston, November 14; Lincoln, December 12. Connecticut: West Hartford, November 1. New York: New York City, November 23. New Jersey: South Mountain Reservation, November 24; Summit, December 18. Pennsylvania: Berwyn, October 30. Maryland: Patuxent V~Tildlife Research Refuge, October 19. District of Coluinbi&: Washington, November 13 (average of 23 years, October 3). West Virginia: Bluefield, October 15. Virginia: Lexington, October 15. North Carolina: Raleigh, October 23. South Caro]ina: Chester, October 29. Georgia: Lybee Light, Savannah, November 11. Alabama: Greensboro, October 19. Florida: Clewiston, November 8. Bahamas: Cay Lobos Light, November 22.

Early dates of fall arrival are: Texas: Rockport, August 13. Ohio: Buckeye Lake, July 30 (average, August 15). Louisiana: Rigolets, August 9. Mississippi: Gulf coast, August 25. Massachusetts: Marblehead, August 14. North Carolina: Raleigh, August 5. South Carolina: Summerton, July 7; Chester, August 7. Georgia: Athens, August 2. Alabama: Leighton, August 10. Florida: Pensacola, August 10;. Dry Tortugas Island, August 16. Cuba: Santiago de las Vegas, August 26. Puerto Rico, October 3. Antigua, October 9. Honduras: Tela, October 9. Costa Rica: San Miguel de Desamparados, November 1. Colombia: Bond, October 4. Venezuela: Paraguana Peninsula, October 22.

Egg dates: Massachusetts: 66 records, May 17 to July 1; 37 records, May 30 to June 6, indicating the height of the season.

Michigan: 12 records, May 16 to July 26; 6 records, May 27 to June 14.

Quebec: 17 records, May 27 to June 21; 10 records, June 3 to 10.

Pennsylvania: 14 records, May 15 to June 3; 10 records, May 25 to 31 (Harris).

NEWFOUNDLAND OVENBIRD
SEIURUS AUROCAPILLUS FURVIOR Batchelder
HABITS

Based on a series of 19 specimens collected in Newfoundland, Charles F. Batchelder (1918) gave the above name to the ovenbirds of that region. He describes the subspecies as follows: “Similar to Seiuru~ au~ooapillus, but plumage in general deeper-colored or darker. Tawny of crown browner, less yellowish: ‘amber brown’, instead of the ‘ochraceous orange’ of aurocapillus; black of sides of crown more extensive and slightly more intense; back, from nape to upper tail coverts, and including scapulars, duskier green; dark markings of breast and sides heavier and blacker; brown of flanks deeper.

GRAY OVENBIRD
SEIURUS AUROCAPILLUS CINEREUS A. H. Miller
HABITS

Dr. Alden H. Miller (1942) has given the above name to the ovenbirds of the eastern slope of the Rocky Mountains. He describes the race as follows: “Compared with Seiurus aurocapillus urocapillus of the eastern United States and Mississippi Valley, back, rump and lateral webs of rectrices grayer and paler, less intense olive-green, the feather tips at least approaching grayish olive; green almost lacking in the tails of some individuals; auriculars and side of neck less tawny.

Of its geographical distribution, he says that it breeds “along the lower eastern slopes of the Rocky Mountains and adajacent plains from the Yellowstone River in Montana south to the Arkansas River in Colorado. Suitable habitats include streamside woodlands and yellow pine forests.” It “is known as a migrant from Sinaloa and the Tres Marias Islands, Mexico, where it possibly winters.”