240 U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 211 



the "chollas" that are so very characteristic of the deserts of the neighboring 

 region. 



We found Scott's orioles breeding most commonly on the semiarid 

 valley plains between Bisbee and Tombstone, Cochise County, Ariz. 

 These flat or rolling plains of hard, gravelly soil were bare of vegeta- 

 tion except for the low, scraggly, omnipresent creosote bushes so char- 

 acteristic of much of the region between the mountains and the deserts. 

 The chief attractions in this desolate region for the orioles were the 

 widely scattered specimens of what we called the soapweed yuccas, 

 the picturesque plants in which they were nesting. 



Spring. — Scott's oriole is only a summer resident north of the 

 Mexican border, where it arrives during the first half of April and 

 sometimes before the end of March; the brilliant plumage of the males 

 and their rich song make its arrival most conspicuous. 



Laurence M. Huey (1926) makes the following observation on the 

 migration in northwestern Baja California: 



Many were observed on migration five miles northeast of San Quintin, February 

 25, 1925, although the birds were extremely shy as usual. The presence of this 

 Oriole in numbers so near the Pacific coast offers a problem in migration routing; 

 for the species is of extremely accidental occurrence along the coast further north, 

 in the vicinity of San Diego, whereas inland, on the desert slope of the mountains 

 east of San Diego, it passes regularly. Further observation of these birds will 

 probably determine that they range up the peninsula, equally distributed from 

 coast to coast, as far as the southern extremity of the Sierra San Pedro Martir, and 

 that here they swing toward the Pacific, then northeastward again to the eastern 

 slope of the mountains in southern California. A semi-arid highway, such as the 

 Scott's Orioles prefers, is thus provided. 



Harry S. Swarth (1904) says of its arrival in the Huachuca Moun- 

 tains : 



The earliest date at which I have seen any was March 31, 1903, when a male was 

 secured; no more were seen until April 5, after which date they were abundant. 

 Until nearly the end of April small flocks of from six to a dozen birds could be 

 found along the canyons, usually below 5,000 feet, feeding in the tops of the trees, 

 where, in spite of the brilliant plumage and loud, ringing whistle of the male birds, 

 they were anything but conspicuous." * * * The first to arrive were the old, 

 bright plumaged males, then a week or so later some females began to come in, 

 and finally toward the end of April, what few flocks were seen were composed of 

 females, and males presumably of the previous year, in every stage of plumage, 

 most of them indistinguishable from the more highly colored females. 



Nesting. — Throughout its wide breeding range Scott's oriole builds 

 its nest in a variety of situations, depending on the environment. 

 William Brewster (1902) records a nest, found by Frazar in the Cape 

 region of Baja California, that was placed "among the densest foliage 

 of a fig-tree at a height of about 8 feet, and rested on a few small 

 twigs, but seemed to be fastened only to some twigs above, from 

 which it was suspended." Farther north, it is said by Walter E. 



