170 



ORNITHOLOGIST 



[Vol 7-No. 22 



We were ascending' the steep grade which 

 leads from the floor of the Valley towards 

 Inspiration Point, when a single individual 

 was seen perched upon a toj)-most twig of 

 a tall sugar-pine, now and then giving ut 

 terance to its peculiarly sad call-note. A 

 few days later, while ui camp near Fresno 

 Flats, twenty miles east of Madera, we 

 again met these birds. Our camp was 

 among the foot-hills of the Sierras, where 

 live and white oaks are about the only 

 trees. Among these this bird was com- 

 mon and was undoulitedly breeding.though 

 I was not fortunate enough to discover any 

 nests. We left this locality late in July. 

 di-ove leisurely down out of the foot-hills, 

 crossed the burning plains of the San Joa- 

 quin, and up over the Coast Ranges to 

 Hollister, Gilroy, and San Jose, but though 

 I was constantly on the watch, I saw no 

 more of this species during the trip. So 

 the evidence seems pretty conclusive that 

 the Black crested Flycatcher is greatlj- re- 

 stricted in its habitat and is found only in 

 localities the most favorable. 



Upon my return to Santa Paula in Au- 

 gust, I found it rather common in the 

 canon where I first saw them. They were 

 feeding upon the berries of the choke- 

 cherry, and remained in the locality until 

 October, when they disajjpeared, going 

 farther south. 



Early in the Spi'ing of 18S1, they again 

 returned to the same canon, where they 

 continued to be seen throughout the Sum- 

 mer. Their love for canons, or narrow val- 

 leys, is shown by the fact that, although 

 the mouth of Santa Paula Canon is only 

 half a mile from where I lived, yet I sel- 

 dom saw any of the species nearer my 

 house than the mouth of tlie canon, — only 

 one pair nesting outside the canon, as far 

 as I could discover. Dui'ing this season I 

 made frecpient excursions to varioiis small 

 valleys and canons of Ventura County, and 

 found the Black-crested Flycatchers in 

 only two jjlaces besides Santti Paula canon. 

 One of these was the small but beautiful 



Ojai (0-hi) Valley, about seven miles from 

 Santa Paiila canon, and connected with it 

 by Si-Sa (See-Saw) Canon : the other was 

 among the moss-covered oaks on the Caci- 

 tos Pass from San Buenaventura to Santa 

 Barbara. In eacii of these places it was 

 quite common, but I was unable to find a 

 single nest. 



During April and May I kept pretty 

 careful watch on these birds in Santa 

 Paula Canon, determined to find their 

 nests if possible : but up to the first of 

 May they did not seem to have paired off, 

 but continued to feed in a flock of twelve 

 to sixteen. So anxious was I that I had 

 interested several of my most observing 

 pupils to assist me in watching them. On 

 May 4th, Benuie and Eugene Scott, two 

 of my most energetic assistants, came run- 

 ning to me saying that they had fovmd a 

 Phainopepla's nest with three eggs in it. 

 I told them they must be mistaken about 

 the number of eggs, but they Iniew there 

 were three, and were ready and anxious to 



'I'o be Continued. 



Thrushes. 



I noticed in the O. and O. for October 

 that E. D. Wintle, of Montreal, Canada, 

 asks for description of nests and eggs of 

 some of the Turdidm. I have had very 

 limited experience in collecting, but can 

 report finding three nests of the Wilson 

 Thrush and one of the Wood Thrush, with 

 eggs, during the past Sunnner. 



June .5th I found a nest of tlie Wood 

 Thrusli, containing four fresh eggs, and a 

 nest of the Wilson Thrush with three eggs 

 (one a Cow-bird's.) I took one egg from 

 the Wood Thrush's nest, and from the nest 

 of the Wilson Thrush I took the Cow- 

 bird's egg and one Thrush's egg. I suc- 

 ceeded in blowing the foiiner, but broke 

 the latter ; both were well incubated. I 

 visited the nest the next day and found 

 that they were bound to preserve the orig- 

 inal number, there being four eggs in it, as 

 when I found it. 



