NORTHWESTERN OREGON .TUNCO 1081 



Nesting. — A.M.Bailey (1927) writes: "Saw a female Junco carrying; 

 nesting material and watched her for some time. She made several 

 trips, always to one spot whicli seemed to possess material to her 

 liking. The male did not appear for some time, and then came hop- 

 ping nonchalantly along. On the appearance of the little female, he 

 promptly pursued her, she protesting vigorously. I noticed, how- 

 ever, that she was very carefid not to drop a wisp of the nest lining." 

 The nest, Bailey says, was on the groimd, in a thick climip of hem- 

 locks, and tucked back under a carpet of moss, and had four eggs. 

 He tells about another nest completed by a pair, then abandoned, and 

 a second nest built in the moss a few feet away. The nest had five 

 eggs as did another he observed. I have been unable to learn whether 

 sets of five eggs are more common for this race than for otliers, where 

 the usual niunber is four. 



Bailey mentions one female building her nest Anth little if any 

 assistance from the male, and a pair that bmlt two nests together. 

 The young in one of the nests he observed "were nearlj' ready to 

 leave the nest July 4." No information indicates that incubation or 

 fledgling periods differ from those of the other races, nor that oreganus 

 rears more than one brood annually. 



Plumages. — Richard R. Graber (1955) gives the juvenal plumage 

 for this race as follows: "Forehead and crown streaked profusely, 

 bro\\'n and dark bro"wn ^rithout great contrast. Nape concolor with 

 crown medially, graj^er laterally. Back russet, streaked Anth black- 

 ish bro^^^l. Rump gray brown, upper tail coverts dark brou-n, both 

 obscurely streaked with darker brown. TaU largely blackish brown, 

 outer two pairs of rectrices white. Remiges blackish; outer primaries 

 edged with, white, secondaries and tertials with rust. Coverts edged 

 with rusty brown, greater coverts tipped with whitish or buffy white 

 (two narrow wing bars). Lores dusky. Aiuicidars drab gray bro^vn 

 Post-auriculars like nape. Sub-aiu*iculars, chin, and throat heavily 

 streaked, blackish and buffy white. Chest and sides strongly tinged 

 with buffy, other underparts white or buffy white. Chest, sides, and 

 flanks heavily streaked with dark (blackish) brown. Leg feathers 

 brown. Crissum unstreaked." 



Of the adult pliunage Miller (1941b) notes: 



Buff feather tips are less prevalent than in montanus antl shufeldti, yet some 

 extremes occur. * * * The buff tippings of the nape are usually more ruddy in 

 this race. * * * There are no instances of white on the wings or of red on the 

 pileum deeper than the feather tips. 



The only aspect of wear that is different from that in other Oregon juncos 

 relates to the back; there the darker red brightens very materially from the Front's 

 brown of fresh feathers, but never becomes yellowish or whitish along the edges 

 of the feathers as in shufeldti, thurberi, and montanus. 



