448 BULLETIN 191, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM 



and even intensifies until the enemy has passed. The remarkable thing about 

 this united cry, is that it is absolutely impossible to locate any single one of the 

 birds by it. The chorus forms an indefinably confusing, all-pervading sound, 

 which I know from personal experience to be most elusive. It may be com- 

 pared in this respect to the sound of the cicada. ♦ * * It seems reasonable to 

 infer that this monotonous chorus of uncertain direction, at the same time as it 

 sounds a general alarm, serves to conceal the individual birds, all of which at the 

 same time maintain a statuesque, motionless attitude. * * ♦ Scarcely any attention 

 is ever paid by the bush-tits to large hawks, such as buteos, or to other large 

 birds such as turkey vultures, pigeons, or jays. The bush-tits seem to be able to 

 easily identify their real enemies at surprisingly long range. 



Dr. Robert C. Miller (1921) has published an interesting paper on 

 the flock behavior of the coast bushtit that is well worth reading; I 

 quote from his summary as follows : 



The flock moves from place to place by what may be termed the spread of 

 impulse. An individual bird, moved no doubt by the hunger instinct, takes tem- 

 porary leadership, and is followed to a new location by the others- There are 

 no regularly assigned leaders, though probably the most venturesome birds assume 

 the leadership most often, ♦ * * 



The method of flock movement makes evident the extreme improbability of 

 there being any definite forage routes. The direction taken by the flock at any 

 time is a matter of caprice, or the circumstances of the moment. Due to their 

 dislike for crossing open spaces, however, the birds are likely to frequent areas 

 where the vegetation is continuous and will generally avoid those where it is 

 discontinuous, so that an impression of regularity in their forage movements may 

 thus secondarily be given. 



In all their movements the bushtits remind one strongly of the chick- 

 adees. Their flight is weak and apparently uncertain, though well 

 adapted to their mode of life; they flit about rapidly and accurately in 

 the foliage or bare twigs of trees and bushes; they seldom make long 

 flights, and when they have to cross open spaces between covers they 

 do so hurriedly and with a weak undulating flight. As gymnasts they 

 are fully equal to the chickadees, and perhaps even more expert, for 

 their longer tails give them even better control of movement and balance 

 in foraging for their food about the tips of slender swaying twigs, Mrs. 

 Bailey (1902) states it very well as follows: "Flitting from branch to 

 branch they fly up to light upside down on the underside of a bough, 

 and then without taking the trouble to turn right side up drop back- 

 wards to catch upside down on the tip of another twig, where they 

 bend double over the terminal buds looking for food." 



Carroll Dewilton Scott has sent me the following notes on rather 

 unusual behavior of bushtits : "Only once in fifty years' association with 

 brownie bushtits have I seen any show of belligerency. A flock of about 

 15 were hopping about in a small tree near the house and flying into a 



