70 



OKNITHOLOGIST 



[Vol. 13-No. 5 



they are said to roost. They usually continued 

 feedinj;; until quite late at night, and we often 

 disturl)ed tlieni as we sailed to our various col- 

 lecting grounds. 



While the birds were few about Guaynias, 

 the fislies weie ver}' uuuierous, of which we 

 will have something to saj' elsewhere, and ma- 

 terial for good friends were not wanting. 

 Among those who gave us very valuable aid in 

 this strange land, were the Agent of the Ferro- 

 Carril de Sonora, Mr. Godman, an old Indian 

 boy, and Theodore Caudvet, a verj' intelligent 

 French fisljernian. 



Mr. Williard, our Minister at this place, is 

 known to and is tlie triend of every American 

 in .Sonora. Wandering naturalists enjoy add- 

 ing such friends to their collection. 



A List of Some Birds of La Plata 

 County, Col., with Annotations. 



BV CHAS. F. MOUKISON. 



In preparing this paper, I otter no apology as 

 to its incompleteness, believing that a list 

 should rather be small aud with the species 

 actually known to occur than a large one, may, 

 if the sijeeies being entered upon mere hearsay 

 or upon the evidence of local collectors, or that 

 of residents of the surrounding country, who 

 know little or nothing of the birds. The pres- 

 ent list is based upon my own experience of 

 two years, and also upon *papers of Mr. Frank 

 M. Drew of Genoa, 111., who spent five years 

 in the State, and much of the time in San Juan 

 County, which lies nortli of the northeast cor- 

 ner of La Plata County, the principal avenue of 

 migration into San Juan County being side of 

 the Rio las Animas, which runs directly through 

 tlie eastern part of La Plata. I also made some 

 use of his paper on tlie verticle I'ange of birds 

 in Colorado, and, except where my own expe- 

 rience gives certain species a higher range 

 tliau he gives, I shall use his notes. 



Althougli we now have what is intended as a 

 standard system of nomenclature, it is so little 

 used as yet that I prefer using that of Prof. 

 Ridgway for the present, as will answer 

 my purpose as well. However, in my t " List 

 of Birds of Colorado," whicli is now being 

 prepared, I shall use tlie A. O. IT. Code, as I 

 consider iti best to use one of our many nomen- 



*FieId Notes on the Birila of San Juan Coiiutv, Colorado, 

 B. N. O. C. Vol. IV. April, 1881. 



tA List of the Birds of Colorado, being the result of 

 the work done by the members of the Colorado Ornithoiof,'- 

 ical Association for the year of 1887. Soou in press. 



clatures than to have so many, which only 

 serves to mix matters, especially am<ing tlie 

 younger students of ornithology. Outside of 

 Mr. Drew"s papers and my own investigations, 

 tlie autliority will always be given upon wliich 

 a specie is entered. I will not take tlie space iu 

 the O. & O. for a description of La Plata Coun- 

 ty, but I shall use the A. O. U. Code, and enter 

 the birds which I omit here, as for instance, 

 the new species of Junco (•/. 0. shttfelti), lately 

 separated by Mr. H. K. Coale, and the Horned 

 Lark (O. alpestris areuicula), separated by Mr. 

 Henshaw, but for the present purpose, tlie no- 

 menclature used will answer my purpose. 



1. Hi/locichla ustulata swainsoni (Cabau), 

 liidgw. Olive-backed Thrush. I took a nest 

 with tliree eggs, supposed to be of this species, 

 but as it was in the post and near where a sen- 

 try was stationed, I dared not fire my gun, as 

 by so doing I was liable to alarm the garrison, 

 and perhaps spend the balance of the daj' in the 

 post guard-house. The nest was placed upon 

 some dead bushes hanging over a small slug- 

 gish stream, two feet above the water, nest of 

 glass and leaves which were moist, and so 

 loosel3' constiucted as to nearly fall to pieces 

 when I removed it. Eggs with ground color, 

 dark-blueisli, and I should say spotted, not 

 speckled, as the spots were large and almost 

 entirely covered the ground color. I am sorry 

 to be obliged to begin this list with such a 

 doubtful species, but I enter it with the above 

 remarks, for what it is worth. Found up to 

 9000 feet. 



2. Hi/Uirichla u)ialasc(X aiiduhoni (Baird), 

 Kidgw. Rocky Mountain Hermit Thrush. 

 Tolerably common and breeds, the nest is gen- 

 erally if not always placed in the bushes where 

 the undergrowth is thick and heavy. It pre- 

 fers hillsides near sluggish water, as old beaver 

 dams and swamps, but I have never found their 

 nests actually in these watery places but near 

 them. A sweet songster, eggs plain. It often 

 arrives at Ft. Lewis before the snow is gone, 

 although it does not breed before the last of 

 May or first of June, higher up it breeds Later. 

 They range up to 11,000 feet. 



3. MeruUx miyratoria propinqua (Ridgw). 

 Western Robin. This bird is common, and its 

 habits so much like the eastern species as to 

 require no comment here, although I will drop 

 the hint so often put and as far as I know never 

 answered, viz., " Why does that well-known 

 law regarding the light, dry air, bleach the 

 tail of our .\merican Robin?" 



A nest of this species which I found in 1887, 

 was placed upon a beam of an old lime house, 



