36 NESTS AND EGGS OF N. A. BIRDS. 



55a. CERTHIA FAMILIARIS MEXICANA. 



MEXICAN CREEPER.*- 

 FAMILY Ti^oglodytidse. — Wrens, 



56. CAMPYLORHYNCHUS RRUNNEICAPILLUS. 



CACTUS WREN. 



This species inhabits the "southwestern borders of the United 

 States, from the valley of the Rio Grande to San Diego, in Califor- 

 nia." The nest of this bird is long and purse-shaped and very large 

 for the size of the bird, and is usually placed on the branches of a 

 cactus. It is composed of grasses and lined with feathers. My 

 collection contains a set of four eggs, collected by B. W. Evermann, 

 near Santa Paula, California. These are of an oblong oval shape, 

 slightly pointed at one end. They are thickly covered with beau- 

 tiful, rich salmon-colored spots over a white ground. These are 

 so uniformly scattered over the entire surface as to give a beautiful 

 rich cast to the egg. They measure from .93 to one inch in length 

 and .64 to .65 in breadth. The nest which contained these eggs 

 was placed in a prickly pear tree. 



57. CAMPYLORHYNCHUS AFFINIS. 



SAINT LUCAS CACTUS WREN. 



This bird is an inhabitant of Lower California. According to 

 the highest authority the nest of this species is hardly distinguisha- 

 ble from those of the more northern species. 



'•The eggs vary from 1.05 to i inch in length, and from .65 to .70 

 of an inch in breadth, and has a reddish-white ground, very uni- 

 formly dotted with fine markings of reddish-brown, purple and 

 slate." 



58. SALPINCTES OBSOLETUS, 



ROCK WREN. 



This bird inhabits the "Western United States, South to Guate- 

 mala." **The materials which compose the Rock Wren's nest are 

 very miscellaneous — some general term like "rubbish" would best 

 express the state of the case. Sometimes a nest is found to be 

 composed almost entirely of some single substance that happened 



