NEVADA REDWING 165 



description by Grinnell (1914a) which follows: "In shape of bill and 

 other general characters closely similar to A. p. sonoriensis; male 

 scarcely distinguishable, but female conspicuously darker colored, 

 on account of the great relative breadth of black streaking both 

 above and below; in this respect similar to female of A. p. caurinus, 

 but bright rusty edging on back and wings replaced by ashy and 

 pale ochraceous; bill in male of caurinus more slender than in either 

 sonoriensis or nevadensis." 



Spring. — Claude T. Barnes has sent me the following account of 

 the spring behavior of the redwing: "During the spring of 1942 I 

 frequently visited Farmington bay, Utah, for the purpose of recording 

 migration dates, especially those of the Nevada redwing (Agelaius 

 phoeniceus nevadensis). Despite the severe cold winter and stormy 

 late spring, the male redwings appeared on the creek- willows on 

 February 20. They sang perfunctorily, and, while sitting, none 

 showed their red epaulets. Day after day there was little change 

 in the male flock, except that it grew more vociferous, on March 19, 

 for instance, the male chorus being very pronounced, with much 

 clucking as well as song. Still only the yellowish crescent showed 

 on the wing. 



"For the next few days the male flock was dispersing, each male 

 selecting his favorite locale, a brook-footed post here, a marsh fence 

 there, or a reeded patch where slow water ran, always apparently a 

 spot where fresh water was near and perches such as willows and wires 

 either existing or in the making, such as ungrown rushes. 



"And then, on March 23, a flock of 30 drab little females appeared 

 on the scene, staring curiously about the fen from fence wires and 

 manifesting no interest in the scattered males, who, indeed, recipro- 

 cated their indifference. A male atop a fence post beside them treated 

 them as harmless strangers. When the females flew it was in a 

 flock together. 



"On April 9 the yellow-headed blackbirds appeared; but the red- 

 wings were still in status quo — female flock, isolated males. 



"On April 13 the male's epaulets showed brilliant red in sitting 

 posture; and for the first time the female flock began to disperse. 

 Males began chasing females, and by April 25 no sign of a female 

 assemblage remained." 



Jean M. Linsdale (1938) made the following interesting observation 

 on the nests: 



A feature of the nests of red-winged blackbirds of special interest was noticed 

 in Smoky Valley. This is that the lining in nearly every instance was pale 

 yellow or whitish in color. This contrasted especially with the almost invariably 

 dark color of the lining of the nest of the Brewer blackbird. In these two species 

 as in others which had light or dark colored nest linings, the whitish lined nests 



