THE SHUFELDT JUNCO. 



123 



rims amuck, and goes cliarging abmit thru tlie woodsy mazes in a fine 

 frenz}- — without, however, quite spilling his lirains. Others catch the ex- 

 citement and the company breaks up in a mad whirl of amorous pursuit. 



At the end (jf 

 the brief song 

 period, Juncoes 

 d e p 1 o y thruout 

 the half- o p e n 

 woods or prairie 

 borders of the en- 

 tire State, from 

 sea-level to tim- 

 ber-line. The va- 

 riety and interest 

 of their nesting 

 habits are scarce- 

 ly e.xceeded by 

 those of any other 

 bird. In general 

 they appear to be 

 guided by some 

 thought of seclu- 

 sion or protection 

 in their choice of 

 nesting sites. 

 Stee]) hillsides or 

 little banks are, 

 therefore, favorite 

 places, for here 

 the bird may ex- 

 cavate a coo! 

 g r o t t O' in the 

 earth, and allow 

 the drapery of the 

 hillside, mosses 

 and r u n n i n g 

 vines, to festoon 

 and guard the ap- 

 p r o a c h e s. At 



Xew'iiort we found them nesting in the road-cuts. At Snoqualmie the side 

 of a haystack sheltered a confiding pair. At Tacoma the birds nest at the 

 base of tiny clumps of oak, or under the shelter of brush-piles. Several 



Taken ill Tacoma. 



Photo by the Author. 



UXDER A TIX ROOF. 



THE NEST IN THE CAN CONTAINS FIVE EGGS. 



