290 BIRDS OF THE ROCKIES 



other birds had a leading part, among them being 

 western meadow-larks, western robins, Bullock's ori- 

 oles, American and Arkansas goldfinches, mountain 

 song-sparrows, lazuli finches, spurred towhees, black- 

 headed grosbeaks, summer warblers, western Maryland 

 yellow-throats, and Townsend's solitaires. It has sel- 

 dom been my fortune to listen to a finer pot-pourri 

 of avian music. 



At first only male buntings were seen. Surely, I 

 thought, there must be females in the neighborhood, 

 for when male birds are singing so lustily about a place, 

 their spouses are usually sitting quietly on nests some- 

 where in bush or tree or grass. I hunted long for a 

 nest, trudging about over the meadow, examining 

 many a grass-tuft and weed-clump, hoping to flush a 

 female and discover her secret ; but my quest was vain. 

 It is strange how difficult it is to find nests in Colorado, 

 either on the plains or in the mountains. The birds 

 seem to be adepts in the fine arts of concealment and 

 secret-keeping. Presently several females were seen 

 flying off over the fields and returning, obviously to 

 feed their voung. There was now some colorable pros- 

 pect of finding a nest. A mother bird appeared with a 

 worm in her bill, and you may rely upon it I did not 

 permit her to slip from my sight until I saw her drop 

 to the ground, hop about stealthily for a few moments, 

 then disappear, and presently fly up minus the worm. 



