32 



NOETH AMERICAN BIRDS. 



Oreoscoptes montanus, Raird. 



SAGE THEASHEE; MOUNTAIN MOCKER. 



Orp?ieus montanus, Tuwnsen'D, Jour. Ai-ad. Nat. Sci. I'liila. YII, ii, 1S37, 19'2. — Arn. 

 Birds AiiKT. II, 1S41, 194, pi. cxxxix. Turdiis montanus, Aud. Oru. Biog. IV, 1838, 

 437, pi. ccclxi.x, fig. 1. Mimus montanus, Bonap. Cousp. 1850, 276. Oreoscoptes 

 montanuji, B.viiii), Birds N. Amer. 1858, 347; Rev. Am. B. 1864, 42. — Scl.vter, 

 P. Z. S. ISo'J, 340. —lis. Catal. 1861, 8, no. 30. — Cooper, Birds Cal. I, 12. 



Sr. Cii.\R. Fir.st quill rather shorter than the si.xth. ' Tail i^lightly graduated. Above 

 brownish-ash; each leather obsoletely darker in the centre. Beneath dull white, thickly 

 marked with triangular spots, except on the under tail-coverts and around the anus, which 

 regions are tinged with )'ellowish-brown. Wing-coverts and quills edged with dull white. 

 Tail feathers brown ; the outer edged, and all (except, perhaps, the middle) ti|ipcd with 

 white. Length, 8 inches; wing, 4.8.5; tail, 4.00; tar.su.s, 1.21. 



younij. Similar, but spots beneath less sharply defined, and the upper parts quite 

 conspieuou.'jly streaked with dusky. 



II.\n. Rocky Mountains of United States, west to Pacific, .'south to Cape St. Lucas. 



The careful observations of jMr. Eobert Eidgway have led him to tlie con- 

 viction that the name bestowed upon this species of " ilountain Blocking- 

 Bird " is doubly a misnomer. It is not at all imitative in its notes, and it is 



almost exclusively a resident of the ar- 

 temisia plains. It seems to be chiefly 

 confined to the great central plateau of 

 North America, from Mexico ahnost to 

 Washington Teiritory. Specimens have 

 been procured iroin Cape St. Lucas, the 

 Lower Colorado, Mexico, and Texas, on 

 the soutli, and Niittall met witli it nearly 

 as i'ar north as Walla- AValla. It ])roba- 

 bly occupies the wliole extent of the 

 Great Basin. 



Dr. Kennerly, who met with it wliile 



crossmg the arid mesas west of the I'io 



Grande, says tliat while singing it was 



usually perched upon some bush or low tree. It was freipiently seen 



seeking its food upon the ground, and wlien approached, instead of flying 



away, it ran very rapidly, and disappeared among tlie low bushes. 



During tlie winter months it was observed near San Antonio, Texas, by 

 jMr. Dresser ; and was also found by him to be common about Eagle Pass. 

 He noticed the same peculiarity of their running instead of their flying 

 away when disturbed. They preferred the flat, bush-covered plains. A few 

 remained to breed, as he obtained the eggs tliere, although lie did not liira- 

 self meet with one of the birds in summer. 



It is generally represented as keeping chiefly on the grcjund, and oljtaining 





Oreoscoptes montanus. 



