/<" " '" ' ^AA <<: |1 ir^il clOS-ANCElfj^. ^ V H^* *! 1 1 te, ^OF-CAUFQBfe, V?. iS? A X- "^. " )l -UBRARYOc, Is 309. SAGK Guot'sE Centrocercus urophaxianus BIRDS OF CALIFORNIA AN INTRODUCTION TO MORE THAN THREE HUNDRED COMMON BIRDS OF THE STATE AND ADJACENT ISLANDS WITH A SUPPLEMENTARY LIST OF RARE MIGRANTS, ACCIDENTAL VISITANTS, AND HYPOTHETICAL SUBSPECIES BY IRENE GROSVENOR WHEELOCK AUTHOR OF " NESTLINGS OF FOREST AND MARSH " WITH TEN FULL-PAGE PLATES AND SKVENTY-E IGHT DRAWINGS IN THE TEXT BY BRUCE HORSFALL Fourth Edition CHICAGO A. C. McCLURG & CO. 1916 COPYRIGHT A. C. McCLURG & Co. 1903 Published February 20, 1904 Stack Annex TO MY MOTHER 2003717 NOTE OF ACKNOWLEDGMENT WHILE, in the preparation of this work, I have met with universal kindness from the ever- hospitable Californians, my especial thanks are due to members of the Cooper Club and to Dr. David Starr Jordan, of Leland Stanford University, for many cour- tesies extended and kindly encouragement given. For advice and assistance I am also indebted to Mr. Chas. F. Lummis, Mr. Leverett M. Loomis, Mr. John Muir, Mr. Joseph Grinnell, Mr. H. R. Taylor, and the late Chester A. Barlow. But it is to my fellow-student and co-laborer, my husband, Mr. Harry B. Wheelock, that I owe most. With untiring patience he has read manuscript, checked lists, and corrected errors, thereby making it possible for me to go on in the face of many obstacles. I. G. W. INTRODUCTORY CALIFORNIA is the land of sunshine, flowers, ^-' and bird song. In the great sweep of country from Mexico on the south to Oregon on the north are found climatic conditions ranging from the Arctic circle to the tropics. The valleys blossom with roses, while the mountains are crowned with perpetual snow. Hence we find a flora and fauna as unique as the climate. It is the paradise of the bird-lover as well as of the tourist. Birds of the Torrid Zone come here ; birds of Alaska winter here ; birds from the mountains come down into the valleys. There is a constant -movement north and south, a lesser one vertically from the warm lowlands to the colder altitudes, or vice versa. To live among these fascinating feathered folk and not long to know them, one must have eyes that see not and ears deaf to Nature's music. Yet the bird-lover who wishes to enjoy an acquaintance with them without scientific study finds his road beset with difficulties. From the scientific works that seem to him hopelessly abstruse he turns to the " popular " bird book, which is delightful but does not help him to x INTRODUCTORY identify his "bird neighbors." It is in the hope of meeting this need and affording an introduction to the birds more commonly found in California that this non-technical work is offered. Keys have been avoided and a simple classification, according to habitat or color, substituted, following the excellent plan used by Neltje Blantjan, which has never been excelled for easy iden- tification. In selecting these three hundred from the five hun- dred varieties listed as occurring within the confines of the State and adjacent islands, no arbitrary rule has been followed, the author being guided by her own experience in field work among them. During a test study in 1902, the ground covered was from Mexico to Oregon, and from the islands off the coast to the eastern slope of the Sierra Nevada ; and in this, two hundred and forty odd species were commonly met with, while the others were by no means rare. The observations were made in the desert region along the California side of the Colorado River, and at Tia Juana, San Diego, Riverside, Redlands, Pasadena, San Pedro, Santa Cata- lina, in. the Santa Cruz Mountains, Monterey, Pacific Grove, Palo Alto, Alviso, San Francisco Bay region, Martinez, the Farallones, Mt. Tamalpais, Mt. Shasta, Sacramento, Slippery Ford, Lake Tahoe, Fallen Leaf Lake, Eagle Lake, and Lake Tulare. This list is given for the benefit of bird-loving tourists who may wish to do likewise. INTRODUCTORY xi Of the birds occurring in the State and not men- tioned in this volume forty are ducks and geese, the rest being either rare migrants or subspecies, confus- ing to the observer and usually impossible to differ- entiate without a gun. The seabirds, usually omitted from non-technical bird books in the East, are so conspicuous a part of California Avifauna that no work on the subject would be complete without them. Field notes begun in 1894, and made with the aid of powerful binoculars, form the basis of the follow- ing pages. The books used for reference, wherever the author's personal observations were unsatisfactory, are " Ridg way's Manual of North American Birds, " Bendire's " Life Histories, " Loomis's " Water Birds of California," Mrs. Bailey's " Manual of Birds of the Western United States," Davie's " Nests and Eggs of North American Birds," " The Condor, " "The Auk," "The Nidologist," Nelson's "Report of Birds of Alaska," and Mr. Grinnell's " Check-list of California Birds." The check-list numbers and nomenclature of the American Ornithologist Union have been strictly adhered to. No originality is claimed for the technical descrip- tions of the birds, as on this point the author has drawn freely from standard authorities, oftentimes verbatim, when a personal examination of specimens was impossible. xii INTRODUCTORY It has been a difficult matter to collect facts for the breeding range and season because there is no pub- lished data on the subject; but the work has been conscientiously done, and every precaution taken to prevent possible errors. The dates given include the earliest and latest at which eggs or newly hatched young are usually found. It will be seen from this that especial attention has been given to the habits of each species during the reproduction period, including nest-building, incubation, care of the young, etc., all of which, unless otherwise accredited, has been taken from the author's own notes. Long and careful study of the feeding habits of young birds in California and the Eastern United States has led the author to make some statements which may incur the criticism of ornithologists who have not given especial attention to the subject. For instance, that the young of all macrochires, wood- peckers, perching birds, cuckoos, kingfishers, most birds of prey, and many seabirds are fed by regurgita- tionfrom the time of hatching through a period varying in extent from three days to four weeks, according to the species. Furthermore, that birds eating animal flesh or large insects give fresh (unregurgitated) food to their young at a correspondingly earlier stage of devel- opment than do those varieties which subsist on small insects or seeds. Also, that exclusive seed eaters are usually fed by regurgitation so long as they remain in INTRODUCTORY xiii the nest. Out of one hundred and eighty cases recorded by the author, in every instance where the young were hatched in a naked or semi-naked condition they were fed in this manner for at least three days. In some instances the food was digested, wholly or in part ; in others it was probably swallowed merely for con- venience in carrying, and was regurgitated in an un- digested condition. There seemed to be no definite relation between the duration of the period of regurgi- tative feeding and the length of time required for the full development of the fledgeling. Young vul- tures were fed in this way for ten days, and stayed in the nest nine weeks. Young robins received their food by this process three, occasionally four, days, and usually took flight on the fifteenth day. Hum- ming-birds, swallows, and a few others are fed by regurgitation so long as they remain in the nest. Goldfinches, waxwings, and others are nourished in this way, with an occasional meal of raw food, until they are ready to fly. The list is a long one, and as most if not all of these instances are mentioned in their individual biographies, given in this volume, they need not be cited here. Scientists have long known that pigeons, doves, and humming-birds feed their young in this manner, and the discovery that most species do likewise need cause no surprise. IRENE GROSVENOR WHEELOCK. CHICAGO, January 1, 1904. ilf- IDENTIFICATION THE accompanying chart of a bird will explain the terms used in the descriptions. "Upper parts" refers to the entire upper surface of the body of the bird from the bill to the tail. In the same manner, "Under parts" refers to the under surface. In identifying, decide first into which class the bird you are observing is likely to belong, that is, whether land or water birds. If water, whether it is found on the open sea, or near shore, or in bayous or marshes, and whether it is a swimmer or a wader, and then look for it in the list where you think it may belong. Always ascertain as near as you can the bird's length, and remember, in judging length, that a bird usually looks smaller than he actually measures. If the bird is among the land birds, and is neither a game bird nor a bird of prey, trace it down in the color classification. USE OF THE MAP THE four Life Zones indicated on the accompanying map are those mentioned in the data given under the headings Geographical Distribution and Breeding Range. They represent climatic conditions of temperature in the regions indicated. 'The "Boreal" extends from the tree- less, snowclad summits, far above the timber-line down through the coniferous forests. Next in coldness is the "Transition," which begins at the Yellowpines, overlap- ping the Boreal a little, and containing some species of oaks, buckbrush, manzani'ta, and some sagebrush. Lying between the Transition and the almost tropical heat of the "Lower Sonoran " is the "Upper Souoran," where we find the juniper, oaks, piuon pines, and sagebrush. Last of all, the "Lower Sonoran" is the warmest. In it lie the hot valleys and desert regions of California, and here flourish the live oaks and mesquites. Many Cali- fornia birds migrate from one to another of these zones between breeding seasons, as the birds of the Eastern United States migrate north and south. This changing from lower to higher altitude, or the reverse, is termed vertical migration. CONTENTS PART L WATER BIRDS BIRDS OF THE OPEN SEA Tufted Puffin 3 Black-footed Albatross . . 17 Rhinoceros Auklet .... 5 Short-tailed Albatross . . . 18 Cassin Auklet . . 6 Pacific Fulmar 19 Ancient Murrelet .... 7 Black-vented Shearwater . . 20 Marbled Murrelet .... 10 Dark-bodied Shearwater . . 21 Xantus Murrelet .... 11 Kaeding Petrel 22 Pigeon Guillemot .... 12 Black Petrel 2:3 California Miu-re .... 13 Ashy Petrel 24 Parasitic Jaeger 16 Man-o'-War Bird .... 26 BIRDS FOUND NEAR THE SHORE OR IN BAYS Loon 27 Forster Tern 44 Pacific Loon 30 Least Tern . 45 Red-throated Loon .... 31 American Black Tern . . . 46 Glaucous-winged Gull . . . 32 Farallone Cormorant . . . 48 Western Gull 34 Brandt Cormorant .... 50 Herring Gull 37 Baird Cormorant 52 California Gull 39 American White Pelican . . 53 Ring-billed Gull 40 California Brown Pelican . . 55 Heennann Gull 41 Whistlino- Swan 56 Bonaparte Gull 42 Trumpeter Swan .... 57 Royal Tern 43 BIRDS FOUND ALONG THE BEACHES Wilson Phalarope .... 58 Red-backed Sandpiper, or Ox American Avocet .... 60 Bird 66 Black-necked Stilt .... 62 Western Sandpiper .... 67 Long-billed Dowitcher . . . 63 Sanderling 68 Least Sandpiper, or Meadow Greater Yellow-legs .... 69 Oxeve . 65 Wandering Tattler . 71 CONTENTS Spotted Sandpiper billed Curlew 73 Snowy Plover 78 Hudsonian Curlew, or Jack Black Turnstone .... 80 Curlew .... 75 Black Ovster-catcher . 81 BIRDS FOUND IN BAYOUS AND MARSHES Western Grebe 82 Anthony Green Heron . . 96 American Eared Grebe . . 84 Black-crowned Night Heron 97 Pied-billed Grebe .... 86 Sandhill Crane 98 White-faced Glossy Ibis . . 89 California Clapper Rail . . 99 American Bittern .... 90 Virginia Rail 101 Least Bittern 91 Sora, or Carolina Kail . . 102 Tregauza Blue Heron, or California Black Rail . . 104 Blue Crane 93 Florida Gallinule, or Red- American Egret .... 94 billed Mud-hen'. . . . 105 Snowy Heron 95 American Coot 107 FART II. LAND BIRDS I. -UPLAND GAME BIRDS Wilson Snipe . . . . Mountain Plover . . . Mountain Partridge . , Plumed Partridge . . Ill . 113 . 114 115 Gambel Partridge .... Sierra Sooty Grouse . . . Oregon Ruffed Grouse . . Sage Grouse . 122 124 126 127 California Partridge . , Valley Partridge . . , , . 118 . . 120 Band-tailed Pigeon . . . Mourning Dove .... 130 132 II. BIRDS California Vulture, or Condor 134 Turkey Vulture . . . '. 136 White-tailed Kite .... 138 Marsh Hawk 139 Western Sharp-shinned Hawk 142 Cooper Hawk 143 Prairie Falcon 145 Western Red-tailed Hawk . 147 Red-bellied Hawk .... 149 OF PREY Swainson Hawk .... 150 Ferruginous Rough-leg . . 153 Golden Eagle 154 Bald Eagle 156 Duck Hawk 158 Pigeon Hawk ..... 159 Desert Sparrow Hawk . . 161 Fish Hawk, or American Osprey 163 American Barn Owl . . . 166 CONTENTS xxi American Long-eared Owl . 168 Short-eared Owl .... 169 California Screech Owl . . 171 Pacific Horned Owl . . . 173 Burrowing Owl 175 Pygmy Owl 178 III. COMMON LAND BIRDS IN COLOR GROUPS With Brmon Predominating in Plumage Road-runner 181 California Cuckoo .... 185 Red-shafted Flicker ... 188 Dusky Poorwill, or California Poorwill 192 California Nighthawk . . 194 Texan Nighthawk .... 197 Say Phoebe 199 Western Wood Pewee . . 202 Pallid Horned Lark, or Des- ert Horned Lark ... 204 California Horned Lark . . 208 Ruddy Horned Lark ... 208 Streaked Horned Lark . . 209 Gray-crowned Leucosticte . 209 Pine Siskin, or Pine Finch . 211 Western Vesper Sparrow . . 213 Western Savanna Sparrow . 215 Bryant Marsh Sparrow . .216 Belding Marsh Sparrow . . 217 Large-billed Sparrow . . . 218 Western Grasshopper-Sparrow 219 Western Lark Sparrow . . 221 White-crowned Sparrow . . 222 Gambel Sparrow, or Inter- mediate Sparrow . . . 224 Nuttall Sparrow .... 225 Golden-crowned Sparrow . . 225 Western Chipping Sparrow . 227 Brewer Sparrow .... 228 Black-chinned Sparrow . . 230 Thurber Junco, or Sierra Junco 231 Point Pinos Junco . . 234 Bell Sparrow 236 Sage Sparrow 237 Rufous-crowned Sparrow . . 239 Desert Song Sparrow . . . 240 Mountain Song Sparrow . . 242 Heerman Song Sparrow . . 243 Samuels Song Sparrow . . 243 Rusty Song Sparrow . . . 244 Lincoln Sparrow .... 244 Townsend Sparrow . . . 245 Thick-billed Sparrow ... 247 Stephens Sparrow .... 248 Californian Towhee ... 248 Anthony Towhee .... 250 Green-tailed Towhee . . . 251 Black-headed Grosbeak . . 253 Cliff Swallow 256 Rough-winged Swallow . . 258 Cedar Waxwing .... 259 American Pipit 262 Water Ouzel, or American Dipper 264 Sage Thrasher 268 Californian Thrasher ... 270 Pasadena Thrasher . ... 272 Leconte Thrasher .... 273 Crissal Thrasher .... 274 Cactus Wren . ' . . . . 276 Rock Wren 279 Canon Wren 281 Dotted Canon Wren ... 282 Vigors Wren 284 Parkman Wren, or Pacific House Wren . . 285 XXI 1 CONTENTS Western Winter Wren . . 287 TuleWren 289 Interior Tule Wren, or West- ern Marsh Wren ... 292 Californian Creeper ... 293 Sierra Creeper 293 Pallid Wren-tit . . . . . 296 Californian Bush-tit ... 298 Chestnut-backed Chickadee . 301 Coast Wren-tit .... Townsend Solitaire . . Russet-backed Thrush . Audubon Hermit Thrush, Sierra Hermit Thrush . Dwarf Hermit Thrush . Western Robin .... Varied Thrush .... 302 303 306 307 309 309 311 With Dusky, Gray, and Slate-Colored Plumage Belted Kingfisher . . . Vaux Swift . 313 317 Western Mockingbird Slender-billed Nuthatch . . 340 . 342 Arkansas Kingbird . . Cassin Kingbird . . . Ash-throated Flycatcher . . 318 . 322 . 324 Red-breasted Nuthatch . Pygmy Nuthatch . . . Plain Titmouse . 344 . 345 348 Oregon Jay Clarke Nutcracker ... . Oregon Junco .... Bank Swallow .... White-rumped Shrike California Shrike . . . . 327 . 329 . 333 . 334 . 336 . 337 Mountain Chickadee . . Californian Chickadee Lead-colored Bush-tit . . Western Gnatcatcher . . Black-tailed Gnatcatcher . 350 . 353 . 354 . 356 . 358 Plumage Conspicuously Black and White Harris Woodpecker . . . Cabanis Woodpecker . . . Gairdner Woodpecker . . Nuttall Woodpecker . . . White-headed Woodpecker . Arctic Three-toed Wood- pecker Williamson Sapsucker . . Northern Pileated Wood- pecker Californian Woodpecker .. . Gila Woodpecker . . . . 360 White-throated S'wift . . . 361 Western Black Phoebe . . 363 Black-billed Magpie . . . 364 Yellow-billed Magpie . . 366 White-necked Raven . . Bobolink ....... 368 Spurred Towhee .... 370 Oregon Towhee Lark Bunting 372 Phainopepla 376 Black -throated Gray Warbler 378 Plumage Black or Iridescent Black Black Swift . . American Raven Western Crow . 404 405 408 Cowbird . . . Brewer Blackbird Western Martin 379 381 383 387 389 390 393 394 396 398 401 411 412 415 CONTENTS Plumage Green, Greenish Gray, and Olive Black-chinned Humming- bird 417 420 423 426 429 431 433 436 439 441 442 '.spicu 462 465 466 470 473 Blue 485 489 490 Northern Violet-green Swal- low 445 447 448 451 453 454 455 . 457 458 459 474 475 476 478 480 481 483 500 502 Costa Hummingbird . . . Anna Hummingbird . . . Rufous Hummingbird Allen Hummingbird . . . Calliope Hummingbird . . Olive-sided Flycatcher . . Western Flycatcher . . . Traill Flycatcher .... Hammond Flycatcher . . Wright Flycatcher . . . Red Cm Red-breasted Sapsucker . . Lewis Woodpecker . . . Vermilion Flycatcher . San Diego Red-winged Black- bird Western Warbling Vireo Cassin Vireo Hutton Vireo Least Vireo Gray Vireo Lutescent Warbler . . . Dusky Warbler .... Western Golden-crowned Kinglet Western Ruby-crowned Kinglet .... ous in Plumage Bicolored Blackbird . . . Tricolored Blackbird . . . California Pine Grosbeak . California Purple Finch . . Cassin Purple Finch . . . House Finch, or Linnet . . Bendire Crossbill .... Conspicuous in Plumage Barn Swallow ' White-bellied Swallow, or Tree Swallow .... Sonoran Red-winged Black- bird Blue or Metallic Grinnell Jay Blue-fronted Jay .... California Jay . Pifion Jay 493 Western Blue Grosbeak . . 496 Lazuli Bunting .... 498 Western Bluebird .... 505 Mountain Bluebird ... 506 Yellow or Orange Conspicuous in Plumage Yellow-headed Blackbird . 508 Western Meadowlark . . . 511 Scott Oriole ...'... 514 Arizona Hooded Oriole . . 517 Bullock Oriole 519 Western Evening Grosbeak . 523 Willow Goldfinch .... 525 California Goldfinch . ' . . 528 Lawrence Goldfinch . . . Louisiana Tanager, or West- ern Tanager Calaveras Warbler .... California Yellow Warbler . Yellow-rum ped Warbler, or Myrtle Warbler . . . Audubon Warbler . 529 530 533 535 537 . 538 xxiv CONTENTS Townsend Warbler Hermit Warbler . Maegillivray Warbler Pacific Yellow-throat 540 Long-tailed Chat .... 549 542 Golden Pileoiated Warbler . 552 545 Verdin ....... 554 546 SUPPLEMENTARY LIST 559 INDEX ... .569 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS PAGE SAGE GROUSE Frontispiece IDENTIFICATION CHART OF BIRD xiv MAP OF ZONES xvi TUFTED PUFFIN. " As a puppy enjoys a bone " 4 ANCIENT MURRELET. "If a white-cap developed near them, they would always escape it by diving " 8 PIGEON GUILLEMOT. " The Baby Guillemot " 12 ASHY PETREL. " The playmate of the grim old sea " .... 25 LOON. " The young loons are taken into the water " 29 WESTERN GULL. " The young gull is taught to fish " .... 35 AMERICAN BLACK TEIIX. "As it picks dragon-flies from the low rushes" 47 BRA.NDT CORMORANT To face page 50 WILSON PHALAROPE. " Picking up their own food before they were ten hours old " 59 SANDERLING. " A game of tag with the ocean " 69 HUDSONIAN CURLEW. " When alighting " 75 AMERICAN EARED GREBE. When tired, they are given a ride on the mother's back 85 WHITE-FACED GLOSSY IBIS. " Watching for minnows in the shallow water " 89 VIRGINIA RAIL. " Picking his way cautiously between the tules " 101 CALIFORNIA PARTRIDGE. ' It haunts the canons and slopes" . 119 MOURNING DOVE. " A platform of sticks " 133 CALIFORNIA VULTURE, OR CONDOR To face page 134 WHITE-TAILED KITE. " Preying upon the field mice ". ... 139 PRAIRIE FALCON. " Not even the bald eagle can strike such terror to a flock of grouse " 146 xxvi ILLUSTRATIONS PAGE SWAINSON HAWK. "\Vaitsilentlyuntilthepreyappears" . . 151 BURROWING OWL. " They converse in soft love notes " . . . 176 ROAD-RUNNER To face page 181 CALIFORNIA CUCKOO. " He was busy feasting where the tent caterpillars nested" 187 NIGHTHAWK. " Crept back as often as she was driven away " .196 SAY PHCEBE. " The industrious little mother repairs the nest " . 201 GRAY -CROWNED LEUCOSTICTE. "Searching in the snow for beetles and bugs" 210 LARGE-BILLED SPARROW. "It haunts the wharves and break- waters" 219 WESTERN LARK SPARROW. "The singer" 221 GOLDEN-CROWNED SPARROW. "Their food is chiefly weed seeds and winter berries " 226 THURBER JUNCO. "They protested with plaintive calls" . . . 232 SAGE SPARROW. " He sings to his mate, not to you " . . . . 238 DESERT SONG SPARROW. " In rain or shine, he is the same jolly fellow" 241 TOWNSEND SPARROW. " The way he digs for his supper " . . 246 GREEN-TAILED TOWHEE. " A manner distinctly his own " . . 252 BLACK-HEADED GROSBEAK. "His little brown throat swelling with music" . . . .- 254 AMERICAN PIPIT. " Up to the very highest peaks they wander " 263 WATER OUZEL, OR AMERICAN DIPPER . ... To face page 264 LECONTE THRASHER. " He loves the barrenness of the desert" . 274 CACTUS . WREN. " A long, purse-shaped affair " 278 TULE WREN .To face page 289 SIERRA CREEPER. " He offers his sweetheart a fat grub " . . . 295 CALIFORNIAN BUSH-TIT To face page 298 TOWNSEND SOLITAIRE. "Remained there singing when the shadows of evening closed over the scene " 304 RUSSET-BACKED THRUSH. " Only at twilight and in the earliest dawn may one hear the rich sweet song of this shy singer " . . 307 VARIED THRUSH. " Silent and shy " 312 BELTED KINGFISHER. " He strikes again and again " . . . . 315 ARKANSAS KINGBIRD. " Watching with a great show of alertness " 319 ILLUSTRATIONS xxvii PAGE OREGON JAY. " Not a single blue feather " 328 CLARKE NUTCRACKER To face page 329 WHITE-RUMPED SHRIKE. " Impaling their prey on thorns " . . 337 PYGMY NUTHATCH. " Both birds worked busily carrying feathers " 347 PLAIN TITMOUSE. "Busily carrying short hair, feathers, and wool " 349 MOUNTAIN CHICKADEE. " The birds were very fearless ". . . 352 BLACK-TAILED GNATCATCHER. " He was a bewitching little gray ball of feathers " 359 CABANIS WOODPECKER. " Both sexes share the labors of excavat- ing" 362 WHITE-HEADED WOODPECKER. " Where the bark is thickest and roughest " 367 NORTHERN PILEATED WOODPECKER. "After a few trials he learns to hammer right merrily" 374 CALIFORNIAN WOODPECKER To face page 376 WHITE-THROATED SWIFT. " Its nesting site is the most inaccessi- ble cliff " 380 BOBOLINK. " While his demure sweetheart listens " 392 PHAINOPEPLA To face page 398 BLACK-THROATED GRAY WARBLER. "They lean away over to peer under every leaf " 403 BLACK SWIFT. " While flying swiftly through the air " . . . 404 BLACK-CHINNED HUMMINGBIRD. " Lit daintily a few inches away " 418 ANNA HUMMINGBIRD. " Upon a wire clothes-line, and squeaking right merrily " 424 CALLIOPE HUMMINGBIRD. " It feeds upon the painted cups " . 432 NORTHERN VIOLET-GREEN SWALLOW. " It is a lover of pine woods and mountain forests " 446 GRAY VIREO. " The best songster of all the vireos " .... 454 RUBY-CROWNED KINGLET. "Only an expert climber can hope to peep into one " 461 RED-BREASTED SAPSUCKER. "The mother watched the attempt to drink the sweet syrup " 463 VERMILION FLYCATCHER. "Pouring out his joy " 467 SAN DIEGO RED-WINGED BLACKBIRD. " A spirit of reckless daring" 472 xxviii ILLUSTRATIONS CALIFORNIA PIXE GROSBEAK. "He seems fairly to revel in the swirling clouds of snow " 477 MEXICAN CROSSBILL. " Head down, chickadee fashion " . . . 484 STELLER JAY. " Xowhere are they welcome " 487 CALIFORNIA JAY. " The colder the better " 491 YELLOW-HEADED BLACKBIRD. "Beseechingly from the cradle" 510 SCOTT ORIOLE. " He will peer into it with ludicrous earnestness " 516 LOUISIANA TANAGER. " A dragonfly had been captured for break- fast " 532 AUDUBON WARBLER. " Always in a mad chase for something to eat" . . 539 HERMIT WARBLER. " With her beak full of cobwebs" ... 543 LoNG-TAfLED CHAT. "Where he whistled and sang from dawn until dark " 549 PILEOLATED WARBLER. " His song reminds one of the tinkle of a brooklet " 553 VERDIN. " A retort-shaped affair " 555 PART I WATER BIRDS BIRDS OF CALIFORNIA PART I WATER BIRDS BIRDS OF THE OPEN SEA 12. TUFTED PUFFIN. Lunda cirrhata. FAMILY : The Auks, Murres, and Puffins. Length: 15.00. Adults in Summer : Top of head, wings, back, and tail uniform blackish brown ; throat, breast, and, belly dark grayish brown ; cheeks, fore- head, and chin white ; a long silky tuft of yellow feathers, curved like horns, hanging down and back from each side of the crown, just back of the eyes. End of the bill bright red, base greenish yellow ; feet bright red. Adults in Winter: Tufts wanting ; sides of head dusky; feet and bill duller; horny covering at base of bill replaced by brown skin. Doumy Young: Uniform dark gray or black. Geographical Distribution : Coasts and islands of the North Pacific from Southern California to Alaska. Breeding Range : From the Farallone Islands north to Behring Sea. Breeding Season: Approximately, June 1 to August 1. Neat : Usually in crevice in rock ; sometimes a burrow is excavated in the shale ; bare, or lined with coarse weeds. Eggs: 1 ; ranging from white to yellowish buff, variously marked with lilac dots at both ends ; or, irregular, indistinct tan-color spots over entire surface ; or, having nondescript zigzag markings. Size 2.81 X 1.89. THE name " sea parrot " is applied to all puffins on account of their curious parrot-like bill. The Tufted 4 WATER BIRDS Puffin breeds extensively on the Farallone Islands and, to a limited extent, on Santa Barbara and San dementi and Point Reyes Islands. Its single egg is laid in the barest semblance of a nest at the end of a burrow, or in a crevice among the rocks, or often under the shelter of a boulder. Wherever the nest may be it is always valiantly defended, and only in the rare absence of both parents will the collec- tor rob it. The only child receives all the atten- tion proverbially given to only children, for the nest is never left unguarded and the par- ents make a fierce fight if molested. The young puffin is an odd- , , . , , ., . , ., . . looking baby, for it inherits u Asamyenjoysabone ."s* the family bill. Otherwise ' / it looks like a gray rat crouched at the entrance to its home run. Both adults and young are noisy, con- stantly growling from their burrows, and croaking when outside ; this with their odd bill, white face- mask, and drooping yellow ear-tufts, makes them eerie creatures of the sea. Their food consists of fish, mollusks, and Crustacea, which they obtain by diving, using both wings and feet to propel themselves under water. This top-heavy bird is exceedingly awkward on land, and especially so when alighting with a fish in its beak, as with a swinging motion it drops its feet very wide apart. In feeding, the parent holds the fish or 12. TUFTED PUFFIN >^ . * . FIN. * " BIRDS OF THE OPEN SEA 5 crustacean firmly in its beak, and the young tear bits from it with snarling whines, somewhat as a puppy enjoys a bone. The young bird dives or is shoved off from the rocks to the water, both parents assisting at the rather startling debut and, apparently, breaking the force of the fall by flying under the little one. One would expect a bird so uncouth and helpless in walking to be particularly graceful on the water, but this is not the case with the puffins, for they swim in such a horizontal position as to seem even more ungraceful than on land. 15. RHINOCEROS AUKLET. Cerorhinca monocerata. FAMILY : The Auks, Murres, and. Puffins. Length: 15.00. Adults: Upper parts uniform grayish black ; sides of head, neck, upper neck, and sides dull gray ; lower breast and belly white, washed with gray ; a row of narrow, pointed white feathers along each side of occiput ; another row from base of bill across cheek to ear. Nuptial Plumage : Base of upper mandible surmounted by a compressed upright horn, the base of which clasps the mandible as a saddle, down to and inclosing the nostrils. In winter this is replaced by leathery skin. Downy Young : Soft gray-brown. Geographical Distribution ; Coast and islands of the North Paciftp from Behring Sea south to Lower California (resident). Breeding Range: From Washington northward on islands near the coast. Breeding Season : Approximately, June 1 to August 20. Nest : In crevice or at end of burrow, 2 to 4 feet from entrance, some- times lined with refuse, but oftener bare. Eggs: 1 ; chalky white, with faint gray markings. Size 2.70 X 1.82. THE Rhinoceros Auklet is an odd-looking bird, hav- ing a short chunky body, with head set so close to its shoulders as to leave no neck at all, and legs so 6 WATER BIRDS short as to be practically invisible. Floating on the water it seems to have fallen over on its face and to be unable to right itself, so that it looks much more like a bit of wood than a bird. You glance at it carelessly, never dreaming that it may be alive, when suddenly it dives, leaving no trace. In a moment it reappears at some distance away, only to dive again the instant you turn in its direction. It is perfectly at home on or in the water, although so helpless on land, and can swim a long distance submerged. Largely nocturnal in habits, migrating and feeding at night ; it hides from the sun in burrows or behind rocks during the day, and if brought into the strong light it blinks like an owl. At night it flies swiftly in flocks, with peculiar, plaintive cries, after the manner of the swift. In winter it is found on most of the islands along the coast from Tia Juana and San Diego north. Migrates in flocks about May 1. Is recorded from Santa Catalina. 16. CASSI N AUK LET. Ptychoramph its aleutiais. FAMILY : The Auks, Murres, and Puffins. Length: 8.75. Adults: Above, dark slate-color, merging into ashy on sides of head and neck ; upper breast and sides slate ; lower breast and belly white ; a white spot on lower eyelids. Downy Young : Soft brownish gray. Geographical Distribution : Pacific coast of North America from Alaska to Lower California. Breeding Range : From San Benito Islands northward. Breeding Season : Approximately, April 1 to September 1. BIRDS OF THE OPEN SEA 1 Nest: In crevices of rocks, under edge of boulders, or in shallow burrow ; unlined. Eggs: 1 ; greenish white. Size 1.81 X 1.33. LIKE the rhinoceros auklet, Cassin's Auklet is noc- turnal in habit, hiding in its burrow by day and coming out in the twilight to feed and fly. Both species are expert swimmers and divers, obtaining in this manner the Crustacea which form their chief diet. On stormy nights they may be heard calling to each other above the thunder of the surf and the fury of the gale. On clear or moonlight nights they flit like huge beetles over the shore, with continual high-keyed notes. With the screams of the gulls by day and the calls of the auklets by night, the rocky islands of the Pacific coast are never silent. The Cassin Auklets are resident in small numbers off the coast of Southern California and on the islands of Santa Catalina, Santa Barbara, and Santa Cruz, breeding locally northward along their range. On the Farallones they breed in great numbers, and are also found nesting abundantly on the Netarte Islands and along the rocky coast of British Columbia. Each pair will usually raise three broods, of a single bird each, every season. The young remain in the nest until fully feathered, when they are able to fly, swim, and dive with the ease of adult birds. 21. ANCIENT MURRELET. Synthliboramphus antiquvs. FAMILY : The Auks, Murres, and Puffins. Length: 10.00. Breeding Plumage : Head and throat black ; sides of neck, line on each side of crown to nape, white ; upper back gray, streaked laterally with white ; back, wings, and tail brownish gray, blackish on prima- ries ; sides sooty brown ; breast and belly white. 8 WATER BIRDS Winter Plumage : Throat white; upper parts uniform dark gray ; under parts white. Downy Young : Above, soft dark gray ; lower parts and throat white. Geographical Distribution : Coasts of the Northern Pacific from Monte- rey northward to arctic circle. Breeding Range: From Sitka northward. Breeding Season: June and July. Nest: Unlined, in holes in a bank or shallow burrow. Eggs: 2 ; deep buff, with fine markings of light purplish brown. Size 2.32 X 1.47. IN " California Water Birds," No. IT., Mr. Leverctt M. Loomis says concerning the occurrence of the Ancient Mnrrelet at Monterey in midwinter: "About - v five hundred yards from the surf a belt of drift kelp extend- ing from Seaside Laboratory (^ around Point Pin os (Pacific Grove, Cal.) had gained an anchorage. Thenar- - "If a white-cap developed near them, they would always escape it by diriitg." row strip between this and the beach was the favorite resort of "Ancient Murrelete. A good many were <- also found near the surf in the little coves in -r^^the direction of Monterey, and some were seen several miles out from the land. They were great BIRDS OF THE OPEN SEA 9 divers and swimmers under water, and voracious in their pursuit of small fry. Unlike marbled murrelets they did not seek safety in flight when pursued. Neither did they dive as soon or remain as long under water when keeping out of the way of the boat. If a whitecap developed near them they would always escape it by diving. That this little Auk leaves its summer home in the land of ice- bergs- and comes south in considerable numbers in winter to California has not been generally known to ornithol- ogists." In April it starts north again, and by May 20 has reached the breeding ground in Alaska. Here it selects a nesting place, either a deep crevice in the rock, the abandoned burrow of a rabbit, or under the heavily matted grass. Under the grass it burrows its way for two or three feet, and there scratches out a small cavity, lining it carefully with dry grass from the outside. Here two buff eggs are laid. These are brooded by one bird during the day, while the other feeds out at sea. At night they change places. The only account of their nesting habits has been given by Mr. Littlejohn, who spent some time with them on an Alaskan island. He describes the squeaky noises made by the nocturnal birds, murrelets, auklets, and petrels, as effectually banishing sleep. "As if not satisfied with the constant babble of their neighbors, the murrelets took especial delight in alighting at the foot of the A-shaped tent, toe-nailing it up to the ridgepole, resting there a moment, and then sliding down the other side." 10 WATER BIRDS 23. MARBLED MURRELET. Brackyramphus maiinoratus. FAMILY : The Auks, Murres, and Puffins. Length: 9.75. Adults in Summer : Above dusky, barred with rusty brown ; under parts white, each feather tipped with umber, producing a mottled effect. Adults in Winter : Above slate-gray with white band across nape ; scap- ulars mixed with white, and feathers of back tipped with brownish ; lower parts white, more or less mottled with gray. Young : Above uniform dark gray, with light band on nape more or less distinct. Lower parts white, mottled with gray. Geographical Distribution : Pacific coast of North America from South- ern California to Alaska. Breeding Range : From Oregon coast northward. Nest : In burrow in ground, or hole in bank, or crevice in cliff. Eggs: 1 ; buffy, marked with purple-brown. Size 2.14 X 1.42. THE Marbled Murrelet is found only in the Pacific Ocean, and breeds in such inaccessible places that little is known of its habits. The adult birds and young are found in numbers about Vancouver Island, but its nest- ing sites are difficult to find. It is more common along the coast of British Columbia than farther south. The best authorities seem to agree that the nesting habits of this species are like those of the ancient murrelet and their usual breeding grounds only a little farther south. In California they are common near the coast all winter as far south as San Diego. At Monterey we found them exceedingly timid, diving at the slightest alarm and impossible to approach. Their food consists of small invertebrates, which they pick from the rocks at some distance under water. BIRDS OF THE OPEN SEA 11 25. XANTUS MURRELET. Endomychura hypoleuca. FAMILY : The Auks, Murres, and Puffins. Length: 10.00. Adults : Upper parts plain slaty gray ; under parts, including cheeks and throat, uniform clear white ; lining of wing white ; head without ornamental feathers or spines. Downy Young : Uniform dusky color above, light gray beneath. Geographical Distribution : Southern California to Cape St. Lucas. Breeding Range : From San Diego southward on coast of Southern Cali- fornia and on Coronado Islands. Breeding Season : Approximately, March 1 to June 1. Nest : In crevices of cliffs ; usually lined with coarse grass. Eggs: 1 ; light buffy, with gray-brown markings. Size 2.05 X 1.50. THE Xantus Murrelet is a common resident along the coast of Southern California as far north as Monterey. Little is known concerning its breeding habits, although it nests on the coast from San Diego south, more abun- dantly sout\i of the Mexican border. It is numerous out in the open sea south of Coronado Islands during the breeding season, and is said to nest on the Island of San dementi as well as Coronado. It is found in the Santa Barbara Channel at all seasons of the year, and without doubt a few nest on the Santa Barbara Islands at present, though the breeding ground there is reported as deserted for some years. ' The nesting habits are probably not unlike those of its Alaskan cousins except as to season. 12 WATER BIRDS 29. PIGEON GUILLEMOT. Cepphus columba. FAMILY : The Auks, Murres, and Puffins. Length: 13.50. Adults in Summer : Uniform blackish except wings, where black basal half runs to point, making a black wedge between two white patches ; feet red ; bill black and slender. Adults in Winter: White, varied on upper parts with black ; wings and tail as in summer. Young: Similar to winter plumage of adult. Downy Young : Uniform black above, under parts gray. Geographical Distribution : Coasts and islands of the North Pacific from Behring Strait to Southern California. Breeding Range : From San Nicholas Island northward. Breeding Season: Approximately, May 1 to August 1. Nest : Behind or under boulders or in dark places, as near the water as possible. Eggs : 2 ; light green-blue, thickly marked with lilac, mostly at larger end. Size 2.43 X 1.62. THE Pigeon Guillemot, "so like a guillemot and so like a pigeon," is very abundant on the Farallones. It is a pretty, graceful bird, first cousin to the murre, which it somewhat resembles, being of a soft, dark brown color. Two points im- press you at first, its conspicuous scarlet feet, and the broad white band on the wing. Like many sea birds, it stands with the body in a vertical position, supported by the long foot, after the manner of a penguin. Its curious nest is made of pebbles, carried 29. " THE BABY . . GUILLEMOT" one by one in its bill and deposited in a circle in dark crannies of the rocks or hidden under boul- ders. They seem to serve chiefly as a rim to keep the eggs BIRDS OF THE OPEN SEA 13 from rolling away. The breeding ground of the Pigeon Guillemot is that also occupied by the gulls, on the lower part of the islands, often near the water's edge. Yet surrounded on every side by the nests of the gulls and living near neighbors with them, they seem to be the only birds which these brigands of the sea do not commonly molest. Probably pigeon eggs are not to their taste. The baby Guillemot when first hatched is covered with thin blackish down on the head, neck, and back, shading to dark gray on the under parts. There is no conspicuous coloring to betray him in the dark nesting place, for even his feet are dull olive rather than red like those of his father. As with our own' land pigeons, the family always consists of twins, theo- retically a male and a female. Like the land pigeons, also, they are fed by regurgitation ; but here the resem- blance ends, for they learn to dive and swim almost as soon as the down is fairly dry, and become expert in paddling swiftly with their heads submerged, in a unique and very amusing fashion. 30a. CALIFORNIA MURRE Una troile calif ornica. FAMILY : The Auks, Murres, and Puffins. Length: 17.50. Adults in Summer: Upper parts uniform grayish brown; browner on neck and sides of head; under parts white. Adults in Winter: Upper parts same as in summer ; under parts white ; throat and sides of head more or less washed with brownish ; sides tinged with darker. Downy Young: Upper parts grayish brown, the head and neck finely streaked with pearl-gray. Under parts white. Geographical Distribution : Coasts and islands of North Pacific. 14 WATER BIRDS Breeding Range : From Farallones to Alaska. Breeding Season : Approximately, May to August. Nest: A bare flat place on cliffs, no lining, no protection. Eggs: I ; pear-shaped; varying from white to buffy, amber, and pale green. May be either unmarked or streaked with brown. In size they vary from 3.50 X 1.90 to 2.05 X 1.45. THE great Murre rookery of the California coast is on the Farallone Islands; until the last few years their eggs were a common product in the markets of San Francisco. According to figures furnished by Mr. Leverett M. Looinis, the collection of Murre's eggs at the Farallones in 1896 amounted to 7>645 dozen, all of these being shipped to California markets. Mr. Loomis also says: "In 1885 three hundred thousand eggs were gathered. The market became glutted, one cargo being dumped into San Francisco Bay and another abandoned on the island." According to another au- thority, five hundred thousand eggs were sold in less than two months, all collected in one limited portion of South Farallone Island, and, " in the opinion of the eggers, not more than one egg in six was gathered." Fortunately the Government has now forbidden the collection of eggs and the molesting of the birds on any portion of these islands, and no one is allowed to land except by permission of the Government Light House Inspector. Besides being robbed by human enemies, the unfor- tunate Murres have to wage continual war against the Western gulls, who steal their eggs the moment their backs are turned, or even snatch them from under the mother bird. Possibly for this reason they often choose BIRDS OF THE OPEN SEA 15 a narrow ledge just wide enough for them to squat upon when brooding the egg, where they will have only one side to defend. Since they brood in an almost upright position, the egg resting between the feet, it is difficult to tell a brooding bird. Most ludicrous is their habit of ducking their heads as if in salute, and when this is done by hundreds, one after another, the effect is grotesque indeed. I had thought this the result of excitement at the presence of an enemy, but it continued when I fancied myself well concealed and no one else in sight. It is usually fol- lowed by the departure of a number, who dive with incredible swiftness from the steep rocks to the sea, either from hunger or alarm. Although so awkward and helpless on land, they are at home on or under the water, swimming submerged with great ease and swiftness. The nesting date of the California Murres differs with different authorities, Mr. Loomis placing it in April, and Mr. Emerson from the middle of May to late in August ; my own date is June. This discrepancy is accounted for by the fact that they rear several broods in a year if accident befall the earliest. And as the Western gulls consider the young Murre a delicious morsel, the life of any nestling is precarious. When the gulls press too closely, the wise Murres push their one baby off the rock into the water below, darting beneath it with in- credible swiftness, and the young Murre, although not ready for the dive, is yet born with its swimming-suit on, and bobs up serenely after a dizzy fall. 16 WATER BIRDS 37. PARASITIC JAEGER. Stercorarius parasiticus. FAMILY : The Skuas and Jaegers. Length: 17.00. Light Phase of Adults: Top of head and lores dark grayish brown ; re.st of head and back of neck straw-color, merging into white on throat ; breast and belly white, washed on sides with grayish ; back, wings, and tail slaty gray ; middle tail-feathers narrow, pointed, and 3.UU longer than the others ; tarsi black. Dark Phase of Adults: Entire plumage dark brownish slate-color, darker on head and lighter on under parts. Light Phase of Young: Head and neckbuffy, streaked with dark ; upper parts dark grayish brown, the feathers tipped with buffy ; under parts buffy, barred with dark. Dark Phase of Young : Dark grayish brown, darker on wings and tail ; neck, belly, and sides streaked with buffy. Downy Young: Soft grayish brown above, under parts lighter. Geographical Distribution ; Entire northern hemisphere ; south in winter to equator. Breeding Range : Chiefly within the arctic circle. Breeding Season: Approximately, June 5 to July 15. Nest: A mere depression in the ground, rudely lined with grass, dry leaves, or moss ; situated on dry upland or rocks near the water. Eggs: 2 to 4 ; pale greenish brown, spotted thickly with umber at larger end and somewhat over entire surface. Size 2.23 X 1.62. THE Parasitic Jaeger occurs commonly as a migrant on the coast of California, though a few remain all winter. Mr. Grinnell reports one taken at Santa Monica, and Dr. Jeffries tells me they are numerous at Santa Catalina in November. They are winter residents in small numbers, also in Oregon, Washington, and British Columbia, and wherever found in sufficient numbers they render life miserable for terns and gulls by snatching their fish from them. At the end of a month's persecution the bodies of the terns become much emaciated from lack of food, BIRDS OF THE OPEN SEA 17 as nearly every capture is seized by the rapacious Jaegers as soon as raised from the water. Like most bul- lies, the Jaeger never bothers a gull of its own size, but chooses its victim from the smaller varieties. In the northern regions it destroys eggs and nests of other water-fowl, rarely fishing for itself, but living by thievery. 81. BLACK-FOOTED ALBATROSS. Diomedea nigripes. FAMILY : The Albatrosses. Length: 28.50-36.00. Adults: Upper parts dark brownish gray ; under parts uniform grayish ; tail-coverts and anterior portions of head white ; bill dusky brown ; feet black. Young : Similar, but upper tail-coverts dark gray, and little or no white on head. Geographical Distribution : North Pacific, including west coast of North America. Breeding Hinge : Islands of the Pacific near the equator. Nest : A depression in the guano, lined or edged with a little seaweed. Eggs : 1 ; white. VERY little is known of the nesting habits of this rover of the high seas. I have been able to find only one record of any nest discovered or any egg taken. It is said to breed on the islands in the middle of the Pacific Ocean toward the equator, in January and Feb- ruary. Its cries are said to resemble cat-calls and to have a particularly doleful sound heard in the roar of a tempest. Of untiring flight, it visits the land only to nast, and is seldom seen near the coast, preferring the free, bold life on the open sea. 2 18 WATER BIRDS It has been nicknamed " Gonie " by the fishermen, in supposed allusion to a peculiar croaking noise it makes when feeding. 82. SHORT-TAILED ALBATROSS. Diomedea albatrus. FAMILY : The Albatrosses. \: 33.00-37.00. Adults : White, merging to straw-yellow on head and neck ; tail- feathers brownish, primaries having yellow shafts. Young : Uniform dark brownish gray, merging to blackish on head and neck ; shafts of primaries straw-yellow ; bill and feet light brown. Geographical Distribution: North Pacific; in America from California to Alaska. Breeding Range: Islands of the Sandwich group and northward to Aleutian Islands. Nest : The bare ground. Eggs: 1 ; elliptical ; white. Size 4.20 X 2.60. THE Short-tailed Albatross is found on the Pacific Ocean, following the whaling ships to feed on the refuse. Mr. Davie says : " It is easily caught with hook and line, and when taken on board is unable to rise from the deck, as it requires a long range of surface on which to flap its wings." It is occasionally seen in the Bay of Monterey in .December and January, following the whales that fre- quently come into the harbor, and it is remarkably fear- less. A young bird of this species shot by Mr. Loomis was very ferocious, screaming with rage, and trying to bite its wounded wing. When approached by the col- lector who had shot it, the bird turned its fury upon him. The Chinese fishermen regard these monarchs of the high seas with superstitious awe, feeding them and BIRDS OF THE OPEN SEA 19 propitiating them with choice bits, in hope of averting dan- ger and winning good luck in their fishing. According to their belief, the whales drive the sardines into the bay to help the Chinese, but the albatross drives the whales. 86 c. PACIFIC FULMAR. Fulmarus gladalis rodgersi. FAMILY : The Fulmars and Shearwaters. Length: 17.00-19.00. Light Phase : Head, neck, and under parts white ; upper parts ashy gray ; primaries and secondaries dark gray-brown. Dark Phase : Uniform dusky gray above, ashy gray below. Geographical Distribution : North Pacific, south on the American coast to Mexico. Breeding Range : Islands of the Pacific from the coast of British Colum- bia to Behring Sea. Breeding Season: June and July. Nest : in colonies on ledges ami in crevices of steep promontories rising perpendicularly from the sea. Eggs: 1 ; chalky white. Size 2.85 X 1.90. LIKE all the Fulmars, this species is found on the open sea and rarely lands upon the coast. It has been recorded at Monterey, and occurs at most of the islands along the coast of California, Washington, Oregon, and British Columbia. It is very abundant at Santa Cata- lina in the fall and winter. Its common names are Goose, Gonie, Gluttonbird, Giant Petrel. Of these " Gluttonbird " seems to apply to this vulture of the sea. Its food consists of dead flesh, fish, or fowl, as the case may be, upon which it gorges until unable to fly. It is eminently a bird of the open sea, visiting the land seldom except in the breeding season, and usually not flying nearer the coast than five or ten miles. 20 WATER BIRDS All the Fulmars may be distinguished from the gulls in flight by their characteristic wing motions. The wings of the gulls rise and fall rapidly in wide sweeps, and are held more or less at an angle in soaring; the Fulmar wing stroke is slower and apparently (though not really) less powerful. The Pacific Fulmar feeds its newly hatched young by regurgitation of an amber-colored ill-smelling oil. It is said by some authorities to eject this as a protection against enemies, also ; certainly the odor is sufficiently offensive to prevent any but the most enthusiastic orni- thologist from meddling with its domestic affairs. 93. BLACK-VENTED SHEARWATER. Puffinus opisthomelas. FAMILY : The Fulmars and Shearwaters. Length: 12.00-15.00. Adults : Upper parts dark slate-color, merging to gray on head and neck ; under parts white, except lower tail-coverts, which are blackish gray. Downy Young : Upper parts dark ashy gray ; under parts smoky white. Geographical Distribution : Pacific Oceau, chiefly the southward coast of Lower California, north to Santa Cruz, California. Breeding Ramje: Islands of the South Pacific, north to Lower California. RECORDS are claimed of this species as far north as the coast of Oregon. Little is known concerning its nesting habits. Mr. Anthony found adults and young on San Benito Islands in July, and writes that they nest in caves there. (" The Condor," Vol. II. page 29.) Mr. A. W. Anthony in "The Auk," Vol. XIII., has given a full description of the occurrence of these Shear- BIRDS OF THE OPEN SEA 21 waters off the coast of Southern and Lower California. Here flocks of several thousand birds may be frequently seen hovering over the vast schools of herring that for some reason come near the shore. Mr. Anthony men- tions one flock that numbered at least fifty thousand. The presence or absence of the Shearwater near shore is governed by the abundance or scarcity of fish ; during late July, August, and September the maximum is reached. The Black-vented Shearwater is supposed to breed during the winter months, south of the equator, and the summer flocks usually contain numbers of young birds. 95. DARK-BODIED SHEARWATER Puffinm griseus. FAMILY : The Fulmars and Shearwaters. Adults: Plumage uniform sooty gray ; lighter, sometimes whitish, on chin and throat ; under wing-coverts white, transversely mottled with gray at tips ; bill blackish. Geoyraphicfil Distribution: South Pacific, north on the American coast, to Queen Charlotte Islands. British Columbia. Breeding Range : Islands of the South Pacific. Nest : A rude structure of twigs, dead leaves, and peat at the end of a burrow three or four feet long, in side of a bank. Eggs: 1 ; chalky white. Size 2.25 X 1.45. THIS Shearwater occurs in great numbers at Monterey and Santa Cruz, California. I have seen a black cloud fully a mile long composed of thousands of dark-bodied Shearwaters, a few brandt cormorants, and many gulls hovering over the sardines in the Bay of Monterey in June. So numerous were they that the surface of the water was black with them in continual motion as they 22 WATER BIRDS dropped for a catch, or rose each with a fish in its beak, or settled to the water to eat. In this multitude the dark-bodied Shearwaters outnumbered both gulls and cormorants, and the combined noise was indescrib- able. Mr. Loomis, in his work on the migration of sea birds, as observed at Monterey, proves inferential!? that the dark-bodied Shearwaters breed in the south temper- ate zone during the winter months, coming nortli as soon as the breeding season is over, and remaining until September. In New Zealand, where this bird breeds abundantly, it excavates a burrow in a bank almost exactly like that made by a kingfisher. At the end of this is placed a lining of small sticks, and occasionally a few leaves, or a little moss, and here the one chalky egg is laid. 105.2. KAEDING PETREL. Oceanodroma kaedingi. FAMILY : The Fulmars and Shearwaters. Length: 7.25-8.50. Adults : Sooty gray, lighter on under parts ; upper tail-coverts white ; tail-feathers shading to gray at base ; tail forked ; bill and feet black. Geographical Distribution : Nortli Pacific, south to Southern California. Breeding Range : Islands of the Pacific Coast. Breeding Season : March to September. Nest : In burrow, or more commonly in crevices of loose rock ; rudely lined with dried grasses. Eggs : 1 ; cream white, with wreath of fine purple dots about larger end. Size, 1.34 X 1.00. According to Mrs. Bailey the Leach petrels reported on the coast of California were really the species known BIRDS OF THE OPEN SEA 23 as Kaeding petrels. There is little to distinguish the two except size, the latter being slightly smaller and darker than the Eastern species. In breeding habits the two are probably identical. Male and female take part in sitting upon the single egg sometimes one of the pair, sometimes both together. The newly hatched young are fed by regurgitation of a brownish oily fluid. Like the forked-tailed petrel, this species ejects the oil from its throat and stomach if molested. The odor clings to nest, eggs and young. 107. BLACK PETREL. Oceanodroma melania. FAMILY : The Fulmars and Shearwaters. Length: 8.00-9.00. Adult : Dusky blackish, lighter on under parts ; greater wing-coverts and outer webs of tertials light ash-color. Geographical Distribution: South Pacific, northward to Los Angeles County, California. Breeding Eange : Islands off the coast of Southern California and south- ward to the equator. Breeding Season : July. Nest : Bare ground, or burrow one to three feet in depth. Eggs: 1 ; pure white ; elliptical oval. Size 1.44 X 1.08. THE Black Petrel, while less common than the ashy, is yet a resident on the ocean adjacent to Southern California. Mr. Grinnell reports it as far north as Santa Barbara, and as breeding on Los Coronados Islands, off San Diego. Like all its family, it comes to land only to nest, and any acquaintance with it must be made from a boat, or during the breeding season at the islands. It 24 WATER BIRDS is nocturnal in habits, feeding and flying only after dark- ness has settled over the sea, and enjoying a storm as the robin enjoys the sun. Its notes are a high plaintive call or a queer, low, purring coo. The latter is heard only during the nesting season. The name "Petrel" means Little Peter, and has been given this bird be- cause of its curious habit of skimming over the surface of the water with feet just touching it in a quick, patter- ing motion, as if trying to walk upon the waves. All the time it flutters its wings like a huge butterfly. 108. ASHY PETREL. Oceanodroma homochroa. FAMILY : The Fulmars and Shearwaters. Length: 8.00-9.00. Adult: Grayish slate-color, merging to lighter on wing-coverts; quills and tail blackish, merging to ashy slate-color on rump and upper tail-coverts. Geographical Distribution : Coast of California. Breeding Range: Islands off the coast of California, including the Farallones and Santa Barbara. Breeding Season: June and July. Nest: In crevices under rocks, under driftwood, in stone walls, in burrows. Eggs: Creamy white, sometimes faintly spotted about the large end. Size 1.19 X 0.93. THE Ashy Petrels were breeding abundantly on the South Farallone Islands at the time of a recent visit I made to the spot, but few of the birds were in evidence during the daylight hours. The nests were well hidden under loose rocks, in crevices and in all sorts of crannies ; they were betrayed only by their disagreeable odor. In BIRDS OF THE OPEN SEA 25 common with other petrels these feed their newly hatched young upon the dark oily fluid which they eject through their bills into the throats of the fledgelings, and this is undoubtedly the cause of the unpleasant smell that ever clings to their plumage. The male petrel takes a full share of the labors of incubation, and some authorities aver that, like the phalarope, he does it all. As soon as he is able to fly, the young petrel takes to the sea, 108. ASHY PETREL. " The playmate of the grim old sea." never to come ashore until, a year or two later, he wants a wife and a burrow of his own. Think of it day after day, week after week, eating, sleeping, resting on the boundless water ! His only refuge from the storm is to fly above or beyond it ; his only food is the drift he may pick up. Dancing on the crest of the wave, dashing through the salt spray, he is the ocean's own darling, the playmate of the grim old sea. 26 WATER BIRDS 128. ' MAN-O'-WAR BIRD. Fregata aquila. FAMILY : The Man-o'-War Birds. Length: 39.00. Adult Male: Uniform iridescent black, with green and reddish purple reflections ; wings very long ; tail forked for more than half its length. Adult Female : Upper parts rusty black ; under parts white ; wings with gray patch. Young : Head, neck, and under parts white ; rest of plumage dull blackish. Doiany Young: Uniform white. Geographical Distribution : Tropical and subtropical coasts generally ; in America north to Florida and Texas, casually through interior along Mississippi River and along Pacific coast to Humboldt Bay, California. Breeding Range: Gulf of Mexico and islands off coast of Lower Cali- fornia. Breeding Season: January to March. Nest: A slight platform of twigs upon the branches of the mangrove trees at edge of lagoon. Eggs: 1 ; dull white, unspotted. Size 2.70 X 1.84. FRIGATE BIRD, Frigate Pelican, Man-o'-War Bird, and Hurricane Bird are the common names applied to Fregata aquila by sailors and fishermen. It is regarded by sea- men as a weather prophet, always flying higher in clear weather and low before a storm. The name " Man-o'- War Bird " doubtless obtains from its resemblance to a black ship as it hangs motionless in midair. Mr. Chap- man writes of these birds : " They have a greater expanse of wing in proportion to the weight of their body than any other bird. They rarely alight on the water, but, facing the wind, pass hours resting motionless on outstretched wings, sometimes ascending to great heights and calmly soaring far above storms. It is when feeding that their BIRDS FOUND NEAR SHORE OR IN BAYS 27 marvellous aerial powers are displayed to the best ad- vantage. By swift, indescribably graceful darts they secure fish which are near the surface, or capture those which have leaped from the water to escape some enemy below. They also pursue gulls and terns, and, forcing them to disgorge their prey, catch it in midair." Although rare in California north of Monterey, they are more or less common throughout the coast from that point southward. They are high-handed plunderers of the gulls, meting out to them some punishment for their constant thieving. But it is to the unfortunate fish-hawk that these pirates are most terrible. Reports are given on good authority of the terror exhibited by fish-hawks at the approach of their enemy, who forces them to fish hour by hour until exhausted, and seizes every fish as soon as it is brought up from the water. This frequently results in the death of the hawk by exhaustion and drowning. BIRDS FOUND NEAR THE SHORE OR IN BA YS 7. LOON. Gavia immer. FAMILY : The Loons. Length: 32.00. Adults in Summer: Head and neck glossy greenish black ; upper parts, wings, and tail iridescent black ; throat and sides of neck crossed by . transverse streaks of white ; back and wings spotted or speckled with white ; breast and belly white ; sides black, spotted with white ; bill black. 28 WATER BIRDS Adults in Winter, and Young : Plumage of upper parts without white ; under parts and throat white. Downy Young : Uniform blackish ; belly nearly white. Geographical Distribution : Northern part of northern hemisphere. Breeding Range : Northern United States and throughout Canada to the arctic circle. Breeding Season: Approximately, June 1 to August 15. Nest: A slight hollow in the sand near the water; sometimes roughly lined with dry reeds, sticks, or marsh grass. Eggs: 2, rarely 3 ; olive, spotted with umber ; elliptical. Size 3.50 X 2.20. ON the loneliest lakes of California the common Loon, known as Gavia imber, is a regular winter visitant, but he shuns the coast whenever he can. Is this because he likes the taste of fresh-water fish better than that of sea fish? \Yho knows? Like those of all diving birds, the Loon's stout legs are set well back, and propel its heavy body with equal rapidity and ease on or under the water. Its speed in submarine swimming has been estimated to reach eight miles an hour and to continue indefinitely with only the bill exposed. In this he uses only his feet, the wings being folded tightly. All its fish are caught by diving. Awkward and helpless on land, where it uses wings to assist in locomotion, it leaves the water only to nest. Its two greenish gray eggs are laid upon a thin mat of grass in a slightly hollowed place on the ground, and, in order to be as far as possible re- moved from neighbors, the site chosen is usually a small grass-covered islet. The young Loons are oval balls of blackish down and are occasionally taken into the water on the back of the adult bird. Their first attempts at div- ing are very funny, and with all their efforts they are able to submerge no more than their heads and necks, so that BIRDS FOUND NEAR SHORE OR IX BAYS 29 they seem to be standing on their heads and paddling their feet in the air. They soon become expert swim- mers and divers. Yet under the water as on it, lurk the Loon's enemies. The large pickerel are fond of catching him by the feet, and great wait for a delicious piece of Loon meat. If he floats serenely on the surface, hawks and gulls are ever ready to swoop down upon him. Fortunate it is for the poor mother that she has but two to guard. The peculiar cry of the Loon has been well described by Mr. J. mud-turtles 7. LOON. The young loons are taken into the water.' 1 '' Langille : "Beginning on the fifth note of the scale, the voice slides through the eighth to the third of the scale above in loud, clear, sonorous tones, which on a dismal evening before a thunderstorm the light- ning already playing along the inky sky are anything but musical. He has also another rather soft and pleas- ing utterance, sounding like who-who-who-who, the syl- lables being so rapidly pronounced as to sound almost like a shake of the voice a sort of weird laughter. 30 WATER BIRDS " Only on a lonely lake in the heart of the woods do you get the startling thrill of the Loon's wild cry one clear, piercing note, or a long, quavering, demoniacal laugh that to the timid suggests a herd of screaming panthers." 10. PACIFIC LOON. Gavia pacifica. FAMILY : The Loons. Length: 27.00. Adults in Summer: Upper part of head and nape pale gray, nearly white ; sides of head, throat, and fore-neck black, glossed with metallic purple and green ; wings and tail blackish ; breast and belly white ; sides of neck, wing-coverts, and back black, spotted and streaked with white ; sides of belly sometimes finely streaked with black. Adults in Winter, and Young : Similar to Gavia imber. Downy Young : Dark sooty gray. Geographical Distribution : Western United States, east to Rocky Moun- tains, south to Cape St. Lucas, north to arctic circle, east to Hudson Bay. Breeding Range : From Northern United States to Alaska. Breeding Season : Approximately, June 1 to August 1. Nest : Of water grasses, rushes, or decayed vegetation at edge of water. Eggs : 2 ; varying in color from brown-olive to pale greenish gray. Size 3.00 X 1.85. THIS species of the Pacific coast Black-throated Loon corresponds to the Black-throated Loon of Eastern United States, being a trifle paler in coloring but iden- tical in habits. It is the most expert of all divers ; I have seen one remain under water three minutes by a watch, mean while covering a distance of a hundred yards in his submarine swimming. They are very abun- dant in Monterey Bay all the winter, and I have found a few there as late as June 10, although the regular BIRDS FOUND NEAR SHORE OR IN BAYS 31 breeding season had begun and they were long since due in Canada. The nest of the Pacific Loon is usually a mass of wet, decaying vegetation at the very edge of the water, or sometimes floating among the rushes. Occa- sionally it is lined with feathers. The bird follows the grebe's fashion of covering the eggs during her absence, but does not remain away all day as do the grebes. The Loons are most devoted parents, carrying the little ones pick-a-back as soon as hatched, and, in case of attack by hunters, often rising with a great splash be- tween the hunter and their brood, to cover the retreat of the young. The food of all Loons consists largely of fish, although they occasionally relish frogs, and to the newly hatched young the mother brings the larvso of water insects obtained by diving. These she lays on the surface for the brood to pick up, instead of placing them in the bills of the little ones. 11. RED-THROATED LOON. Gavia stellata. FAMILY : The Loons. Length: 25.50. Adults in Summer : Sides of head and neck light brownish gray ; throat gray ; a triangular patch of rich chestnut on fore-neck ; crown aiid broad stripe down back of neck finely streaked brownish black and white ; back, wings, and tail dark grayish brown, finely specked with white ; breast and belly white. Adults in Winter, and Young : Throat and fore-neck white ; upper parts blackish, spotted with white. Downy Young : Upper parts blackish slate ; under parts dark gray. Geographical Distribution : Entire northern hemisphere, south in winter as far as latitude 30. Breeding Range : The arctic regions. Breeding Season : June 1 to August 1. 32 WATER BIRDS Nest : A alight hollow on ground, close to water ; imlined and unpro- tected. Eggs : 2 ; brown or olive, spotted with umber. Size 2.50 X 1.81. THIS is the smallest and handsomest of the loons. It occurs in California from November to late in April, being the last to arrive from the North and the first to leave. In habits it is nearly identical with Garia imber, but is a more northern variety, being more abun- dant in Canada than in the United States. It has been found breeding in British Columbia fifty miles north of Vancouver. Unlike the common loon, however, it fre- quents the salt rather than the fresh water, and during the winter months is common along the California coast from Oregon to Mexico. It is the " gray loon " of the fishermen, and its long, wild call as it rises against a breeze and circles under a cloudy sky is always a signal for the boats to seek shelter, for the storm will break and not " blow over." 44. GLAUCOUS-WINGED GULL. Larus glaucescens. FAMILY : The Gulls and Terns. Length: 25.75. Adults in Summer : Head, neck, lower parts, and tail uniform white ; mantle dark pearl-gray ; feet and legs black. Adults in Winter : Plumage similar to that of summer, but with head and neck finely mottled or washed with sooty gray. Young : Dark ash-gray, with mantle mixed with pearl-gray ; head and neck indistinctly streaked with buffy ; under parts mixed with white. Downy Yming : Dull whitish gray above, white below ; head, neck, and upper parts marked irregularly with dark gray. Geographical Distribution : Pacific coast of North America from Alaska and Behring Sea ; south in winter to Southern California. Breeding Range : Islands of the Pacific coast from Washington north- ward. BIRDS FOUND NEAR SHORE OR IN BAYS 33 Breeding Season : Approximately, May 1 to August 1. A'est : A bare slight depression in the ground near shore, or a rude affair of seaweeds and grass on shelving rocks or cliffs. Eggs : 2 to 4 ; from dark olive to white, spotted with light brown and umber. Size 2.88 X 2.03. THE Glaucous-winged Gull is one of the most numer- ous birds on the California coast. Mr. Leverett M. Loomis writes of it at Monterey in midwinter as follows : " Whales frequently came into the bay. Often they would be attended by a great train of gulls and pelicans 'feeding upon the slop-over' ... In Carmel Valley near the ocean I found them [the Glaucous-winged Gulls] in company with Western gulls following the plough as robins do in the spring in South Carolina. The tameness and familiarity of the water birds on this coast strikingly contrast with the wariness of those of the North Atlantic." This gull may be known from the others by the long wing-quills of slate-gray tipped with white. Its winter range does not extend so far south as that of some of its congeners, but it is reported all along the California coast from Monterey northward. In nesting habits the Glaucous-winged Gulls resemble the Western gulls ; the newly hatched Glaucous-winged are the softest, downiest nestlings imaginable. They are fed upon small fish, refuse from salmon canneries, which the parents fly miles to obtain, and small mollusks. 34 WATER BIRDS 49. WESTERN GULL. Larus occidentalis. FAMILY : The Gulls and Terns. Length: 25.50. Adults in Summer : Head, neck, lower parts, rump, and tail white ; mantle dark slaty gray ; wing-quills black, with large spots of white. Angle of lower mandible very conspicuous ; depth of bill through mandible greater than at base. Adults in Winter : Plumage similar to that of summer, except that top of head and nape are streaked with dark gray-brown. Young : Upper parts brownish gray mottled with white ; quills and tail- feathers black, tipped with white ; under parts grayish ; sides mot- tled with white. Downy Young : Ashy white ; head mottled with distinct black patches ; upper parts more or less mottled with dark ash. Geographical Distribution : Pacific coast of North America from Lower California to British Columbia. Breeding Range : From Coronado Islands to British Columbia ; at Santa Catalina, Santa Barbara, and San Clernenti. Breeding Season : Approximately, May 1 to August 1. Nest : Of weeds ; on rocky ledges. Eggs : 2 to 3 ; light olive, spotted with umber. Size 2.76 X 1.94. MOST conspicuous because everywhere present, most interesting because of his very wickedness, is the variety of gull found on the Farallones, and everywhere on the California coast. He is known as Larus occidentalis, and is the only species that breeds on those islands. The pretty herring gulls of our harbors are quite differ- ent in habit from this voracious plunderer. Larus occidentalis is a degenerate. Too lazy to fish for himself, he steals from whomsoever he can. If the victim be a diving bird who has come to the surface with a struggling fish in his beak, the Western Gull will hover over him, compelling him to dive again and again, until, exhausted, he abandons the food he has had no BIRDS FOUND NEAR SHORE OR IN BAYS 35 time to swallow ; then the victor, seizing it quickly, flies away to devour it. Fish brought to the nest of other birds as food for mate or young is stolen by the Western Gulls as soon as laid down, and so expert on the wing are they that but once have I seen punishment overtake them. In this case the bird tried to snatch a fish that had been thrown to a baby seal. Quicker than thought, the seal mother caught the bird by the feet and drew it under the water. In a few moments she rose with the lifeless body, shook it viciously, and tossed it con- 49.. WESTERN GULL. The young gull is taught to fish. temptuously away. This occurred at Avalon, Santa Catalina, and was witnessed by many spectators at 6 A. M. one May morning. But seals are not usually the victims of these tyrants. Cormorant and murre eggs and young, and even young rabbits, are its favorite bill of fare. Eggs they will steal in spite of all precautions ; a lighthouse keeper tells about covering a pile of eggs closely with a sail-cloth, only to have the gulls work their way under it and carry off every one. But in spite of all his faults, the Western Gull is devoted to his mate and nestlings, feeding and guarding them with constant care. Early in May he begins to repair his old nest, stealing material from the cormo- 36 WATER BIRDS rants if he can, bringing it himself if he must. The nest is a large, soft, and warm affair made of dried Farallone weed and occasionally lined with a few feathers. It is also scrupulously clean. No fish scales, fish bones, or other debris is allowed to remain near it. The young gulls, usually three in number, are beauties, covered with grayish buff down and spotted all over with dots of darker. At three weeks old they are mottled black and light ashy. They show no fear, and will allow a person to handle them, only looking surprise from their bright little eyes. One would never believe that such innocent-looking babies could ever become thieves and cannibals. They stay in the nest longer than most of the young sea birds, not leaving it until their wings are fully feathered and strong. Even then they are not like the parents, for, until a year old, all young gulls are mottled brown and white. The brownish-looking gulls flying with the others on our harbors and rivers are not a different species, but are the immature. The young gull learns to fish in a unique way. He also learns to steal, but that is another story. He scram- bles with fluttering wings down to the water, accom- panied by the rest of his family. As soon as he is fairly launched, one of the adult birds brings a small fish, and showing it to him, lets it float on the surface. If the youngster is an apt pupil, he snaps at it and usually gets it. If not, it is snatched up by some adult, for might is right in the sea-bird world. If after losing several in this way he becomes discouraged, he is fed, taken ashore for a sun-bath, and in an hour is back for BIRDS FOUND NEAR SHORE OR IN BAYS 37 another lesson. In the meantime he watches his par- ents filching food from nestlings around him, and as soon as he dares, or can find a bird more helpless than himself, he tries the plan. He finds it much easier than catching a bobbing sardine in the water, and from that time his career in crime begins. 51. HERRING GULL. Larus argentatus. FAMILY : The Gulls and Terns. Length: 23.25. sldults in Summer: Head, throat, and under parts white ; mantle pearl- gray ; white tip of first primary separated from large white spot farther up by blotch of black half an inch wide extending to the tip ; eyelids yellow ; feet pale flesh-color. Adults in Winter: Similar, but mottled with ash-color on head and neck. Young : Grayish brown, streaked or mottled on head, neck, and upper parts with dull whitish ; quill-coverts and tail-feathers rusty black. Downy Young: Soiled white; head irregularly spotted with black; back, wings, and tail washed with ashy. Geographical Distribution: North America in general; in summer from latitude 40 northward ; south in winter to Cuba and Lower California. Breeding Ranye : Inland lakes from latitude 43 to the Upper Yukon, Alaska. Breeding Season: Approximately, May 15 to August 1. AVs/ : A slight depression in the ground, lined thinly with grasses ; near water. Eglonk'S in the edge of swamps ; its nest is a mere crushed-down platform of rushes, and itself so exact an imitation of its surroundings as to be practically invisible to t!e naked eye. On the approach of danger it becomes rigid, with head and bill extended straight up, in mim- icry of a reed, thus rendering its discovery much more difficult. If discovered and flushed from the water-side, it straddles off through the weeds by grasping them on either side with its feet, producing a comical effect of walking on stilts. It looks back often to see whether it is being pursued. If approached from the land side, it takes wing with loud squawks of terror, and flies low but swiftly through the open channels of the marsh to a tree if there be one near. It is frequently found roosting in trees in the early morning or evening, in groups of six or more, after the breeding season is over. During the breeding season its call is a soft dove-like note ; repeated over and over in a sort of undertone, as if it were intended for the ear of its mate alone. BIRDS FOUND IN BAYOUS AND MARSHES 93 94 (part). TREGANZA BLUE HERON, OR BLUE CRANE. Ardea kerodias treganzai. FAMILY : The Herons, Egrets, and Bitterns. Length: 45.50. Adults: Crowii and throat white ; sides and back of head white ; feath- ers lengthened to form a crest ; upper parts liluish gray ; under parts broadly striped black and white ; legs and feet black. Young: Top of head sooty slate ; throat white ; neck ashy, washed with light brown ; under parts streaked buff, slate, and white, with some black. Geographical Distribution: Western United States, south to western Mexico. Breeding Range ; Breeds locally in colonies wherever found. Breeding Season : April and May. * Nest, : A platform of coarse sticks ; placed high up in the tree ; always in colonies. 'Eggs: 3 to 4 ; pale bluish gray. Size 2.50 X 1.50. THE Great Blue Heron is a common species through- out California, and nests in almost every locality where it is found. At Muir Station, California, there is a large heronry in sycamore trees on the property of Mr. John Muir, and the noise of the young birds at feeding time can be heard half a mile away. The birds return to their heronry in February, and the young are hatched in April, though fresh eggs have been found as late as June 1. The young are fed by regurgitation, which in this case is a more than usually ludicrous performance. So violent is the shaking which each young heron undergoes in the process of receiving his food that he seems in imminent danger of being jerked out of the nest and hurled to the ground fifty feet below. These herons fly miles to obtain fish for food, and one or the other parent is en route during all the daylight 94 WATER BIRDS hours. After having been fed, the young heron draws back his head until it lies upon his shoulders, and sits there a sleepy, solemn-looking hunchback until next feeding-time. 196. AMERICAN EGRET. Casmerodius egretta. FAMILY : The Herons, Egrets, and Bitterns. Length: 39.00. Adults in Nuptial Plumage: Snowy white; the interscapular plumes straight, filamentous, very long, reaching below the end of the tail ; head without crest ; bill yellow ; lores orange. Young, and Adults after Breeding Season : Same, but lacking the inter- scapular plunjage. Geographical Distribution : Temperate and tropical America, on the Pacific coast from Oregon to Patagonia. Breeding Range : As far north as Oregon on the Pacific coast. Breeding Season : April, May, and June. Nest : A loose platform of coarse twigs ; in colonies in trees near water. Eggs: 2 to 4 ; light bluish. Size 2.35 X 1.65. THE story of the American Egret is one more tragedy in the annals of ornithology, and is " a startling evidence of man's power in the animal world. At his word a species is almost immediately wiped out of existence." These beautiful birds are exterminated in Florida, and the devastation has begun on the Western coast ; already they are listed as " rare " where they once bred in abun- dance. The " nuptial plumage " only is salable, since it alone contains the pretty " aigrette " plumes ; and so, at a time when the true sportsman is bound by an unwritten law to protect the nesting birds, the plume- hunter shoots them mercilessly for commercial purposes. BIRDS FOUND IN BAYOUS AND MARSHES 95 197. SNOWY HERON. Egretta candidissima. FAMILY ; The Herons, Egrets, and Bitterns. Length: 23.50. Adults : Plumage always pure white. Nuptial Plumage: Pure white; " aigrette " plumes hang like a wh'ce fringe from interscapular region to beyond the end of the tail ; simi- lar plumes on lower neck and forming an occipital crest ; bill black, yellow at base ; legs black ; feet yellow. Young : Like adults after breeding season ; that is, white, with no inter- scapular plumes. Geographical Distribution : Temperate and tropical America ; on the Pacific coast from Oregon to Buenos Ayres. Breeding Range : As far north as Oregon. Breeding Season: April 15 to June 15. Nest : A loosely built platform of sticks ; placed in trees or bushes near swamps. Eggs: 2 to 5 ; light bluish. Size 1.80 X 1.20. BEAUTY has proved a fatal dower to this exquisite bird, which has become nearly extinct through the ravages of the plume-hunters. " The delicate aigrettes which it donned as a nuptial dress were its death warrant. Woman demanded from the bird its wedding plumes, and man has supplied the demand." The saddest part of the whole sad story is the fact, not sentiment, that the killing must be done during the nesting season ; consequently the young, bereft of both parents, starve in the nest. For every dainty aigrette in hair or bonnet, a brood of baby herons has suffered excruciating, long- continued torture, and death. In California this heron is a summer visitant to the interior valleys, but is by no means common at any season of the year. 96 WATER BIRDS 201 b. ANTHONY GREEN HERON. Butorides lirescens anthonyi. FAMILY : The Herons, Egrets, and Bitterns. Length : 15.00-22.00. Adults: Crown, crest, tail, and wings green ; sides of neck yellow- brown ; belly light grayish brown. Geographical Distribution : Southwestern United States ; south . in winter. Breeding Range : Breeds locally wherever found, along the rivers of the interior. Breeding Season : April. Nest : On branches of trees and bushes ; a loose platform of sticks ; lined with leaves. Eggs : 3 to 5 ; light greenish buff or olive. THIS is a subspecies of the Green Heron, and is found resident only in the southern part of California. Mr. Grinnell lists it as a common migrant, and says it breeds along the larger streams of the interior valleys. It is largely nocturnal in habit, and not unlike the American bittern in its guttural alarm note. This species is found less often in the marshes, and more often along the banks of shallow streams and small lakes, where it sits for hours motionless in a dead tree or concealed stump, seeming to doze through the day- light hours. Early in the morning or late in the evening, however, the heronry awakes to great activity ; for the hungry young clamor harshly for food, and the adults hurry to and fro in pursuit of it. This noise continues far into the night and begins anew with daylight. Frogs, small snakes, fish, and lizards are the prey this Heron seeks, but it occasionally contents itself with insects and field mice. BIRDS FOUND IN BAYOUS AND MARSHES 97 202. BLACK-CROWNED NIGHT HERON. Nycticorax nycticorax ncevius. FAMILY : The Herons, Egrets, and Bitterns. Length: 24.50. Adults: Crown, scapulars, and back iridescent black, with greenish reflections ; forehead, sides of head, throat, and under parts cream white ; sides ashy ; sides and back of neck light brownish gray ; wings, rump, and tail dusky brownish gray ; head ornamented with a few very long, narrow, white occipital feathers. Young: Upper parts grayish brown, each feather marked with a wedge- shaped streak of white ; the quills with white at tips ; tail brownish gray ; under parts striped dark ash-brown and white. Geographical Distribution : Nearly all America, except the arctic regions. Breeding Range : From Manitoba to South America. Breeding Season : April and May. Nest : A platform of sticks, bulky ; placed in high trees ; in colonies of 2 to 5 in a single tree, and thousands in the close vicinity. Eggs: 4 to 6 ; pale greenish. Size 2.15 X 1.55. THE Black-crowned Night Heron is an abundant resi- dent in all parts of California, breeding in suitable locali- ties. Although these herons prefer a nest in a tree, they frequently build in tule swamps, following the habits of the bitterns. They are gregarious at all times, nesting in large colonies. Except when there are young in the nest, these birds are nocturnal feeders, beginning at dusk. Their food consists largely of frogs. During i:icnbation, one bird remains on the nest constantly, and is fed -by the other, who also shares in the sitting. As soon as the young are hatched the fact is made known by the constant foraging for food during the day and carrying it to the nest. It is, however, partly digested and fed to them by regurgitation until they are a week or ten days old. I have never seen anything but frogs, 7 98 WATER BIRDS minnows, and small snakes brought to the nest, and these are carefully killed before being given to the young. The cry of the Black-crowned Night Heron is a harsh guttural squawk or croak, and the noise made when the rookery is full of young birds screaming for food is inde- scribable. Each brood discern their own parent flying toward the nest, and, although the nestlings have sat in unbroken silence until then, at sight of him the hungry cries begin. 206. SANDHILL CRANE. Grus mexicana. FAMILY : The Cranes. Length: 44.00. Adults: Bluish gray, varying to brownish gray; paler on throat and sides of head, darker on primaries ; crown nearly bare, covered with reddish membrane and a scant growth of black hairs. Young : Crown feathered ; plumage rusty brown. Geographical Distribution: United States from the Mississippi valley west to Pacific coast, south to Mexico, east along the Gulf coast to Florida. Breeding Range : In mild localities throughout its habitat. Breeding Season: February, March, and April. Nest : A platform of weeds and grass, on the water line, in a marshy lagoon. Eggs : 2 ; grayish yellow, spotted with cinnamon and gray. Size ' 3.98 X 2.44. THE habits of the Sandhill Crane and those of the whooping crane are very similar. " During courtship and the early breeding season their actions and antics at times are ludicrous in the extreme, bowing and leaping high in the air, hopping, skipping, and circling about, with drooping wings and croaking whoop, an almost indescribable dance and din, in which the females join, BIRDS FOUND IN BAYOUS AND MARSHES 99 all working themselves up into a fever of excitement equalled only by an Indian war dance ; and, like the same, it stops only when the last one is exhausted." 1 The alarm call of this species is a long clear note like a bugle blast ; it may be heard nearly a mile away. It is repeated over and over, as the birds fly in flocks, like the honk of wild geese. 210. CALIFORNIA CLAPPER RAIL. Rallus obsoletus. FAMILY : The Rails, Gallinules, and Coots. Length: 17.50. Adults: Upper parts greenish gray, indistinctly but broadly streaked with blackish brown ; under parts red-brown, washed with .gray on neck and sides. Downy Young: Uniform black. Geographical Distribution : Salt-water marshes of the Pacific coast from Lower California to Oregon. Breeding Range : In sloughs and salt-water marshes, throughout Cali- fornia and Oregon. Breeding Season : April, May, and June. Nest: A loose mat of dry grass ; placed among rushes in marsh. Eggs: 8 ; buff, marked with cinnamon and lilac. Size 1.71 X 1-24. THIS species is abundant on the salt-water marshes in the vicinity of San Francisco and Oakland, and partic- ularly in the south end of the bay near Alviso. They are either tame or exceedingly stupid birds I believe the latter, for they may be captured alive during the early spring and late fall, as they trust to protective coloring and do not try to escape until too late. During the breeding season they are somewhat more shy, but even then it is nearly impossible to flush them because they i Goss. 100 WATER BIRDS skulk or dive rather than fly, and refuse to desert the nest. About the middle of April they commence to make a nest of marsh grass on a tussock, and from that time on are devoted to it. Eight or nine eggs are laid, and incubation lasts nineteen to twenty-three days. The young Rails run about within an hour after hatching, and look much like tiny black chickens with overgrown legs and bills. If discovered on a mud flat, they crouch motionless like so many small black lumps of dirt or stones, and though one may know where to search, it is hard to find them. The immature rails are as stupid as the adults, and will often allow themselves to be picked up without trying to get away. Their food con- sists largely of the larvae of marsh insects which they pick up in the shallow water and along shore, and mature insects of all sorts, as well as small crustaceans. As is well known, certain varieties of marsh birds build several nests, using but one. The " dummy " sometimes serves as a shelter for the adult male ; sometimes the making of it seems to have been a mere pastime ; and, occasionally, as in the case of the clapper rail, it forms a convenient platform or nursery on which the young can scramble for a sun-bath when weary with their first swimming lessons. These unused nests are commonly placed close to the one occupied by the brood and closely resemble it. My own observations in this matter, made at Alviso, tally with those of Mr. Adams at San Fran- cisco Bay and Mr. Shields at Los Angeles. BIRDS FOUND IN BAYOUS AND MARSHES 101 212. VIRGINIA RAIL. Rallus virginianus. FAMILY: The Rails, Gallinules, and Coots. Length: 9.30. Adults : Upper parts brownish olive, striped with sooty ; breast and wing-coverts light chestnut ; wings and tail dark olive- brown ; cheeks gray ; throat white ; under parts light chest- nut ; sides barred with white. Downy Young : Uniform black. Geographical Distribution : North America, from the British provinces south to Guatemala. Breeding Range : Wherever resident. Breeding Season: April, May, and June. Nest : A mat of grasses ; placed on a hummock in a marsh. Eyys : 7 to 12 ; buffy, marked with chestnut. Size 1.24 X 0.94. THE Virginia Rail, although more common east of the Rockies, is by no means rare throughout California. He is an odd-looking bird with voice and manners in keep- ing with his appearance. In the early morning and at twilight his call is a curi- ous combination of grunt and squeal. The love song, however, is quite different ; it is de- scribed as " a guttural cut, cutta-cutta-ciitta oft repeated for hours in suc- cession." You have only to visit a marsh lake in the afternoon or early in 212. VIRGINIA BAIL. the morning and listen, " Picking AM way cautiously between the tules.* 102 WATER BIRDS to discover whether or not he is nesting there. But the marsh birds are shy and very wary, and the long marsh grass guards them well. It is far easier to hear them than to see them. If your patience endures long enough, you. may catcli a glimpse of a Rail picking his way cautiously between the tules, with a curious bobbing motion. If you are so fortunate as to find a mother bird on her eggs, she will become rigid with terror, her red eye dilating and her long neck stretched up not unlike a water snake. In this position you may easily mistake her for a stick or a dry rush. If flushed, her small powers of flight suffice to carry her only a short distance, when she will disappear in the rushes and no patient waiting will give you another glimpse of her. My own experience goes to prove that the nest is always deserted by her after the first forced flight from it. Mr. Brewster says : " The female, when anxious about her eggs or young, calls ki-ki-ki-ki in low tones, and kiu much like a flicker. The young of both sexes in autumn give, when startled, a short explosive kep or kiky closely similar to that of the Carolina rail." 214. SORA, OR CAROLINA RAIL. Porzana Carolina. FAMILY : The Rails, Gallinules, and Coots. Length: 8.60. Adults : Feathers about base of bill black ; a broad black line through crown and extending down the back of the neck ; throat, breast, and cheeks gray ; upper parts grayish brown, streaked with black and white ; belly white ; flanks barred with blackish slate-color. Young : Similar, but no black at base of bill ; upper parts darker. Downy Young: Uniform black ; a tuft of orange-colored, hair-like feathers on throat. BIRDS FOUND IN BAYOUS AND MARSHES 103 Geographical Distribution: North America ; south in winter to northern parts of South America. Breeding Range: Northern United States, northward, including Cali- fornia and Oregon. Breeding Season : May and June. Nest: Of grass ; on the ground, in a marshy place. Eggs: 7 to 14 ; cream-color, marked with cinnamon and lilac. Size 1.26 X 0.90. THE Sora Rail breeds commonly in California in swamps about Los Angeles and other suitable localities. Unlike the clapper rail, it prefers fresh-water sloughs, where it hides among the tall rushes. The baby Rails are fluffy little black chicks with absurdly large feet, and necks too long for their fat little bodies. Almost as soon as hatched they run about among the grass of the drier parts, sometimes being taken away from the water to an adjacent meadow, where they soon learn to snap up bugs and small grasshoppers. Like all the rail family, the Soras are most musical at dawn and dusk, when their queer weird notes make the marshland seem an uncanny spot. In the South this species is sold as a game bird under the name of ortolan, and is much liked by epicures, though its thin little body has, not without reason, given rise to the saying " As thin as a rail." It is abundant on migrations, flying at night and resting wherever it happens to be during the day, even in the noisy streets of Chicago. In these circumstances it seems stupid and confused. I have captured it without difficulty while it was resting, as it squats on the ground, making absolutely no effort to escape. Mr. Frank Chapman writes of this species: "The Sora's summer home is in fresh-water marshes, where, 104 WATER BIRDS if it were not for their notes, the reeds and grasses would long keep the secret of their presence. . . . They will greet you late in the afternoon with a clear whistled keewee which soon comes from dozens of invisible birds about you, and long after night has fallen it continues, like a spring-time chorus of piping hylas. Now and again it is interrupted by a high-voiced rolling whinny which, like a call of alarm, is taken up and repeated by different birds all over the marsh. They seem so ab- sorbed in their musical devotions even when calling con- tinuously, it requires endless patience and keen eyes to see the dull-colored, motionless forms in places where one would not suppose thjere was sufficient growth to conceal them." 216.1. CALIFORNIA BLACK RAIL. Creciscus jamaicensis coturn iculus. FAMILY : The Rails, Gallinules, and Coots. Length: 5.00-6.00. Adults: Crown blackish slate; upper parts dark red-brown, speckled with white ; under parts, neck, and sides of head slate-color ; belly sooty brown. Downy Young: Uniform black. Geographical Distribution: Coast region of California ; probably south to Lower California. Breeding Range : For the Pacific slope, Oregon and California ; east of the Rockies, through the United States. Breeding Season : June. Nest : Of grasses ; on ground ; in wet meadows or marshes. Eggs : 7 to 10 ; white, thinly spotted with cinnamon. Size 1.05 X 0.80. MOST of us are quite willing to agree with the man who said that this bird is " about as difficult to observe as a field mouse." It is its shyness and small size that render it so little known to local ornithologists, who con- tent themselves with pronouncing it rare. Its nest is a BIRDS FOUND IN BAYOUS AND MARSHES 105 cup-shaped depression lined with fine grasses, usually in a wet meadow ; it may be mistaken for that of a meadow lark, but is nearly an inch less in diameter and never arched over.- The Black Rail nests in the marshes at Alviso, California, 'and, I have no doubt, elsewhere throughout the State. The young are tiny black bulls of down, apparently less than one inch in diameter ; they leave the nest the moment the down is dry, and run about with the agility of sandpipers. Although so tiny, they have the instinct of self-preservation to a marked degree ; whenever danger threatens they stiffen into un- winking puff-balls, with only their beady black eyes to betray life. 219. FLORIDA GALLINULE, OR RED-BILLED MUD-HEN. Gallinula galeata. FAMILY : The Rails, Gallinules, and Coots. Length: 13.25. Adults: Dark slate-color, sometimes tinged with brown on back and whitish on belly ; edge of wing and a patch on flank white ; bill and frontal shield red, tipped with greenish ; legs and feet greenish. Downy Young: Uniform black, a few white hairs among the down on throat and cheeks. Geographical Distribution : Tropical and temperate North America, north to British provinces. Breeding Range : For the Pacific slope, from Oregon southward. Breeding Season : April, May, and June. Nest : A mat of rushes bent over and more or less woven together, over water. Eggs: 8 to 10 ; cream-buff, finely marked with reddish brown and chocolate. Size 1.87 X 1.25. IN form so like a sleek bantam hen, in habits so like a coot, the Florida Gallinule is a most interesting study. 106 WATER BIRDS It has a large vocabulary of calls ranging from harsh squawks to pathetic complaining cries not unlike the skirl of a bagpipe. It is a common resident on the fresh- water marshes of California, where it can be heard much oftener than seen ; for it is exceedingly shy, and its dusky plumage renders it inconspicuous among the rushes. In swimming it has a rather awkward way of sitting up very straight and bobbing its head with every stroke of its feet. Feeding on the mud-flats, it dips daintily, as it picks its way through the tangled reeds after the manner of the king rail. Its nest is of dried tule or marsh grass, lined with softer grass of the meadow, the latter being brought there from a distance. All about the rim of the structure the rushes are broken to form a guard for the eggs, for although usually about three inches deep the nests are sometimes only a shallow platform. The young run about like tiny black chicks, and pick up a living from the water, almost as soon as they are hatched. It would be impossible to distinguish them from young clapper rails except for the sprinkling of white hairs among the black down. They are quite unlike little chickens in one thing : at the warning call of the parent they disappear noiselessly, as if by magic, or are meta- morphosed into dark stones ; feathered barnyard babies, on the other hand, run to the mother with cries of fear. BIRDS FOUND IN BAYOUS AND MARSHES 107 221. AMERICAN COOT. Fulica americana. (Common names: Mud-hen; Blue Peter.) FAMILY : The Rails, Gallinules, and Coots. Length: 15.25. Adults : Dark bluish slate, nearly black on head and neck ; under parts paler ; edge of wing white ; bill white ; frontal plate, and spots on bill near end, brown ; legs and feet greenish ; toes with scalloped flaps. Downy Young : Upper parts rusty black ; under parts white ; head and neck with orange-colored hair-like feathers, and upper parts with pale yellow hair-like feathers among the down ; bill red, tipped with black. Geographical Distribution : North America. Breeding Range: Breeds locally through the United States, British Columbia, and Canada. Breeding Season : April, May, and June. Nest : Of grass and reeds ; among the flags or tall marsh grass. Eggs: 8 to 16 ; cream-colored, speckled with dark chocolate. Size 1.89 X 1.42. ALTHOUGH so closely resembling the Florida gallinule in appearance, the Coots may be easily distinguished from them by their white bills. They are much more social and are better swimmers than the gallinules, gathering in companies morning and evening in the shallow water at the edge of a marsh, to feed upon the larvae of water insects and small crustaceans, which they obtain by diving. They like best, however, to pick up their food from the slime at the border of a mud flat or low marshy place, and here they take their newly hatched bantlings. The young are covered with down of a rusty black color above and white beneath, with pale yellow hair-like feathers sprinkled through it. Their bills, unlike those of the parents, are red. They some- times stray near a farmyard and may be picked up easily, as they seem stupefied with fear. 108 WATER BIRDS The adult Coots are very noisy birds, constantly call- ing, screaming, or complaining. Just after nightfall and before dawn, most California marshes are vocal with their varied cries. But, like the gallinules, they are more easily heard than seen, for they are exceedfngly shy. If surprised and forced to flight, they rise with much splattering, fly rapidly a short distance, and fall back into the marsh. They are worthless as game birds, as their flesh is tough and rank in taste ; for this reason the real sportsman shuns them. PART II LAND BIRDS PART II LAND BIRDS I. UPLAND GAME BIRDS 230. WILSON SNIPE. Gallinago delicata. (Common names : Jack Snipe ; English Snipe.) FAMILY : The Snipes and Sandpipers. Length: 10.85. Adults: Crown buff ; upper parts black, bordered and mottled with buff ; neck and breast mottled and streaked buffy and blackish brown ; sides barred black and white ; belly white. Downy Young : Upper parts dusky, more or less mottled with light brown ; under parts whitish. Geographical Distribution : North America ; south in winter to Brazil. Breeding Range : From latitude 45 to the arctic circle. In California, the valleys of the northern Sierra Nevada. Breeding Season: In California, June 15 to July 15. Nest : A slight depression on open, marshy ground ; sometimes lined with grass, usually unlined. Eggs: 3 or 4 ; olive, streaked with black and chocolate. Size 1.55 X 1.07. THE species known as Jack Snipe, or English Snipe, is a prime favorite with sportsmen and epicures. Breed- ing so far north, they are commonly hunted as migrants, and so are more or less protected during their nesting 112 LAND BIRDS season. They usually migrate in small companies. Dur- ing the breeding season solitary birds are frequently seen, which spring from the marsh grass with a harsh cry and zigzag swiftly out of sight in a way most tantalizing to the sportsman. Only an expert can hope to bag them. The Jack Snipe frequents low wet places, obtaining food after the manner of a woodcock, by probing with its long slender bill, which, although not prehensile to the extent of a woodcock's, is yet very sensitive at the tip, and readily detects the choice morsels of food down in the damp earth. Their capricious selection of feeding ground seems to be governed by some occult knowledge as to the con- ditions of the soil, for they are here to-day, gone to- morrow, and often the only places which seem most likely to be their haunt will not be visited by them at all. Mr. Bailey writes of the Jack Snipe : " He is a com- mon bird wherever there are marshes to his taste. . . . On warm summer evenings or cloudy days before a storm, he mounts high in the air and with rapidly vi- brating wings produces a prolonged whirr that increases to a diminutive roar, and repeats it every two or three minutes for sometimes half an hour. At other times he flies low over the grass uttering a guttural chuck-chuck- chuck-chuck-chuck, and then drops out of sight. His common all-round-the-year note is a nasal squawk" UPLAND GAME BIRDS 113 281. MOUNTAIN PLOVER. Podasocys montanus. FAMILY : The Plovers. Length: 8.00-9.00. Adults in Summer : Upper parts grayish brown ; under parts buffy ; a white baud across forehead and over the eye; front of crown and lores black. Adults in Winter: Without distinct black or white on head. Young: Similar to winter adults, but general tone light yellowish brown or buffy. Geographical Distribution: United States bordering the Pacific; in winter as far south as Santa Ana. Breeding Range : Interior of the United States from Texas to Montana. Breeding Season : June and July. Nest : Anywhere on the open prairie ; a depression in the ground, thinly lined with grass. Eijgs: 3 ; light buffy olive, thickly speckled with lavender, brown, and black. Size 1.45 X 1.11. THROUGHOUT the interior plains of California west of the Sierra Nevada the Mountain Plover is a common winter resident. It can be easily recognized by its large size, and by the absence of rings on throat and breast. Mountain Plover is one of the many misnomers, for although called by this name, the bird loves the prairies and treeless plains, and is never found at great altitudes. Unlike most plovers, it seems to shun the water ; even in California it is not found along the beaches where its relatives feed, but hunts grasshoppers and terrestrial insects in the drier inland meadows. Its nest consists of a few grasses scratched together in a spot exposed to wind and weather ; and here the female broods for nine- teen days. As soon as the down is dry on the chicks, they scramble off at their mother's heels, and in twenty- four hours are catching bugs for themselves. H4 LAND BIRDS 292. MOUNTAIN PARTRIDGE. Oreortyx pictus. FAMILY : The Grouse, Partridges, Quails, etc. Length: 10.00-11.12. Adult Male: Crest black ; back and upper parts olive-brown, striped on sides of back with light brown ; top of head and entire breast slate-color ; throat and sides dark red-brown ; sides barred with black and white. Adult Female : Crest shorter, otherwise like male. Young : Upper parts grayish brown, speckled with white ; breast gray, with wedge-shaped white spots ; a whitish line over the ear ; belly white; sides washed with chestnut. Geographical Distribution : Humid transition zone of Pacific coast region, from about latitude 35 to Southern Washington. Breeding Range : Nearly coincident with its habitat. Breeding Season : April and May. Nest: A slight depression in the ground, lined sparingly with dry leaves ; placed beside or under a fallen tree or a bush. Eggs: 8 to 13 ; plain light buff. Size 1.36 X 1.02. THE Mountain Partridge of the coast belt is so nearly like the plumed partridge of the Sierra Nevada in habits and coloring as scarcely to need a separate description. Both are designated as " mountain quail " in the com- mon parlance, and it is about as difficult to obtain a satisfactory view of one as of the other. The plumed partridge is said to measure a trifle less than this species, but in the field the only distinguishing marks are the grayer tone of the back and the bluish nape, all of which makes it difficult to differentiate the species. The Range is possibly the best guide for an amateur in iden- tifying the species. (For habits see " Plumed Quail.") UPLAND GAME BIRDS 115 292 a. PLUMED PARTRIDGE. Oreortyx pictus plumiferus. FAMILY : The Grouse, Partridges, Quails, etc. Length: 10.50-11.50. Adult Male : Crest black ; forehead whitish ; upper parts grayish olive, striped on sides of back with light brown ; top of head, hind-neck, and breast bluish slate-color ; throat and sides dark red-brown ; sides barred with black and white. Adult Female : Crest shorter ; otherwise plumage the same. Young : Upper parts grayish brown, speckled with white ; breast gray with triangular white spots ; a whitish line over the ear ; belly white; sides washed with chestnut. Downy Young : Head and neck buffy ; broad chestnut stripe down the middle of back and rnmp, bordered along each side by dusky ; breast and belly dull whitish. Geographical Distribution : Arid transition zone of Pacific coast district, from Lower California northward through Oregon. Breeding Range : Along both sides of the Sierra Nevada and the south- ern ranges. Breeding Season : April and May. Nest : On the ground ; on bed of dead leaves ; concealed under a bush, or weeds, or log. Eggs: Usually 8 to 14 ; uniform buff. Size 1.36 X 1.02. Food: Insects, berries, and bugs. ONE bright morning in early June, on the way from Fyffe to Slippery Ford on the Lake Tahoe stage route, we flushed a Plumed Partridge from the roadside, and my companion remarked that he had flushed a partridge from that place two days before. A search for a nest began among the manzanita bushes and " mountain misery," which latter was thick, nearly ten inches high. After a short hunt we discovered the treasure hidden well at the base of a tall cedar and guarded by the pretty white blossoms and green leaves of Chamsebatia. 116 LAND BIRDS It was made of leaves and stems of this plant and lined with feathers, and in it lay ten eggs of the Plumed Partridge. They were nearly ready to hatch, how ready I did not guess, and with a hope that no one would molest them in the meantime, we departed, re- solving to come back the next day. But I reckoned without my host, for having eaten luncheon and rested, I stole back alone for a last peep at them, and two had pipped the shells while a third was cuddled down in the split halves of his erstwhile covering. The distress of the mother was pitiful, and I had not the heart to torture the beautiful creature needlessly ; so going off a little way, I lay down flat along the " misery," regardless of the discomfort, -and awaited developments. Before I could focus my glasses she was on the nest, her anxious little eyes still regarding me suspiciously. In less time than it takes to tell it, the two were out and the mother cuddled them in her fluffed-out feathers. This was too interesting to be left. Even at the risk of being too late to reach my destination, I must see the outcome. Two hours later every egg had hatched and a row of tiny heads poked out from beneath the mother's breast. I started toward her and she flew almost into my face, so closely did she pass me. Then by many wiles she tried in vain to coax me to go another way. I was curious and therefore merciless. Moreover, I had come all the way from the East for just such hours as this. But once more a surprise awaited me. There was the nest, there were the broken shells ; but where were the young partridges ? Only one of all that ten could I find. For so closely did UPLAND GAME BIRDS 117 they blend in coloring with the shadows on the pine needles under the leaves of the " misery " that although I knew they were there, and dared not step for fear of crushing them, I was not sharp enough to discover them. No doubt a thorough search would have been successful, but this a dread of injuring them forbade me to make. So picking up the one which had crouched motionless beside a leaf and which was really not much larger than my thumb, I contented myself with trying to solve the mystery of how so much bird ever grew in that small shell, half of which would scarcely cover his head. Once fairly in my hand, he cuddled down perfectly con- tented to let me fit the empty shell to his fat little body, as if he knew he was out of that for good. He was a funny little ball of fluffy down, with a dark stripe down his back and a lesser one on each side of that. Mean- while the adult bird had disappeared, and there was no choice but to put the youngster back in the nest and go on my way. But I had learned two tilings, that affairs move rapidly in the partridge household, and that hu- man eyes are seldom a match for a bird's instinct. Most interesting of the many characteristics of the Plumed Partridge is the habit of migration into the valleys by the first of September each year, and back to the elevations in the early spring. Scarcity of food does not drive them to more fertile foraging grounds, for in the spring they return while yet there is snow. Unlike their relatives, these birds do not band together in large flocks, and seldom more than two broods are to be found in the same cover. Mr. Edwyu Sandys says : " The call 118 LAND BIRDS of the male is suggestive of the crowing of a young ban- tam, while the rallying cry of scattered birds is not unlike the yelping of young wild turkeys." 294. CALIFORNIA PARTRIDGE. Lophorlyx californicus. FAMILY : The Grouse, Partridges, Quails, etc. Length : 9.50. Adult Male : Crest black ; nape dusky brown, bordered by black and white Hues ; upper parts dusky brown, striped with chestnut along the sides of the back ; throat black, bordered by white ; breast slate- color; belly, except chestnut patch, scaled ; sides dusky brown, streaked with white. Adult Female: Head plain, with no black and white ; plumage uniform dusky brown; belly scaled; no chestnut on under parts; sides streaked with white. Young : Upper parts gray-brown ; feathers of back and wing-coverts edged with dark gray and white ; under parts white and gray. Geographical Distribution : Pacific coast region from Monterey to Oregon. Breeding Range : Nearly coincident with the Geographical Distribution. Breeding Season : April and May. Nest: A hollow near a rock or at foot of a tree trunk; scantily lined with grass ; sometimes under hedge, bush, or brush -heap. Eggs: 8 to 10; buffy, thickly spotted with shades of brown. Size 1.33 X 0.97. THE crest of the California Partridge is a little longer than that of the valley partridge, and tips forward in the same way. This handsome little partridge is unfortunately a favorite game bird, and, as such, has become not only somewhat scarce but exceedingly shy. It haunts the canons and slopes covered with underbrush, as well as the sagebrush and stubble, and has learned to run to cover rather than to flush when pursued. In this way UPLAND GAME BIRDS 119 it offers a difficult mark for the true sportsman, and is less in danger from him than from the pitiless trapper. It differs from the valley partridge in being darker- colored and of a more northern range, but is often mis- taken for it, as the habits and call are exactly alike. It is quite unlike the mountain partridge, an inch smaller, and ! 1 with more of a blue tinge to the slate-color of the ?