WESTERN TANAGER 469 



22nd they were to be seen in endless numbers, moving off through the hills and 

 canyons to their summer breeding range in the mountains. This continued till 

 the 28th, and by June 1 only here and there a straggling member of the flock was 

 to be seen. 



They were first found feeding on early cherries, in an orchard situated along 

 the 6teep bank of a creek, on the edge of rolling hills, well covered with a thick 

 young growth of live oaks, which faced the orchard on the east. To this thick 

 cover they would fly, after filling themselves with cherries, and rest till it was 

 time to eat again. This they would keep up from daylight till dark, coming and 

 going singly all day, without any noise whatever^being heard. 



Two men were kept busy shooting them as fast as they came into the trees 

 which lay on the side next to the oak-covered hills. The tanagers at first seemed 

 to take no notice of the gun reports, simply flying to other parts of the orchard. 

 * * * After the first week, I found on going here (May 17), that dozens on dozens 

 of the birds were lying about. For the first two weeks the birds so found were 

 mostly males, but later on the greater numbers were composed of females and 

 young of the year. * * * 



Mr. H. A. Gaylord of Pasadena, Cal., in a letter under date of June 16, 1896, 

 states that 'they were seen singly from April 23 to May 1. From this date up 

 to May 5 their numbers were greatly increased, and by May 5 there was an 

 unusually large number of them. Then for about ten days, until May 16, the 

 great wave of migration was at its height." * * * He also says, "the damage 

 done to cherries in one orchard was so great that the sales of the the fruit which 

 was left, did not balance the bills paid out for poison and ammunition. The 

 tanagers lay all over the orchard, and were, so to speak, 'corded up' by hundreds 

 under the trees." 



Through Oregon and Washington the western tanagers migrate in 

 large numbers, widely spread through the valleys and open country. 

 Gabrielson and Jewett (1940) write: "In migration, the Western 

 Tanagers excite a great deal of comment, particularly when unusual 

 weather conditions force them to stop over. In late May 1920 we 

 were together in Harney County when a sudden heavj r snowfall 

 forced down a multitude of migrating birds, many of which remained 

 for several days. It was curious to walk through the sagebrush and 

 see the topmost stalks flame-tipped with the brilliant yellow, red, 

 and black of these birds. Along with them were numbers of Hermit 

 Warblers and Gray Flycatchers, certainly a combination odd enough 

 to intrigue anyone's interest." 



Referring to El Paso County, Colo., Aiken and Warren (1914) say 

 that these tanagers "arrive from the south in small flocks of from 3 

 or 4 to 7 or 8, and in migration are found well out on the plains." 



Nesting. — As the western tanager generally spends the breeding 

 season among coniferous trees, the nests are usually built in pines or 

 firs, rarely in a tamarack, and occasionally in oaks or aspens. Thomas 

 D. Burleigh (1921) mentions four nests found near Warland, Mont., 

 "one June 4 with five slightly incubated eggs, another June 6 with 

 four incubated eggs, a third June 22 with four well incubated eggs, 

 and the last July 1 with four fresh eggs. These varied from twenty- 



