THE PLAINS AND COLORADO 125 



Twin Lakes. The genus to which the yellow- 

 belHed and brown-headed woodpeckers belong is 

 known as Sphyrapictis. As an illustration of the 

 artificiality of conventional systematic classifica- 

 tion, it is worthy of record that almost until the 

 time of which I am speaking the male and female 

 of the brown-headed woodpecker not only had 

 been described as separate species, — one known 

 as the brown-headed woodpecker and the other 

 as Williamson's woodpecker, — but the female, 

 which presented a somewhat different character 

 and coloring from the other members of the genus 

 Sphyrapicus, had been placed in a genus by her- 

 self. This is not the only instance where sexual 

 difference of little-known birds has caused sys- 

 tematists to describe the two sexes as different 

 species. 



During our stay at Twin Lakes in the month 

 of July there occurred a total eclipse of the sun. 

 This began, as nearly as I can remember, about 

 two o'clock in the afternoon, about the height of 

 day at that time of year. 



Gradually darkness overspread the face of land 

 and water. The birds abandoned the pursuit of 

 their habitual occupations, and the preliminary 

 song period that heralds the night commenced. 

 As the eclipse proceeded, each feathered creature 

 retired to some accustomed sleeping place, and 

 went through all the motions and excitement that 



