404 ORNITnOLOGY. 



short distances at a time, over the bushes, flirting- tlie expanded white- 

 tipped tail at each heavy beat of the wings. " 



Eastward of the West Humboldt Mountains, few Ground Robins were 

 observed until we arrived at Salt Lake City ; indeed, none were seen except 

 at our camp near Austin, in the Toyabe Mountains, and in the eastern canons 

 of tlie Ruby range, at both of which places they were so extremely rare 

 that we could not determine the race.' At Salt Lake City, however, 

 we found the species again very abundant, even more so than at Carson 

 City, and also inhabiting the chaparral on the foot-hills, which in this 

 case consisted of scrub-oaks instead of manzanita, laurel, and wild-plum 

 bushes. It was noticed immediately, however, that while to all appear- 

 ance they were the same birds as those found near Carson City, they 

 uttered totally different notes, whicli we found to agree perfectly with Dr. 

 Cones' description in his " Prodrome," a fact which impressed us at once, 

 for we had previously striven in vain to detect in the notes of the birds of 

 this species at Carson the remotest resemblance to any uttered by the Cat-bird 

 or the "Dickcissel" {Euspiza)"; and since in their characters the specimens 

 agreed perfectly with the diagnosis of megalonyx, we had considered the 

 description of the notes above referred to as erroneous, and were thus glad 

 to find so satisfactory a relief from our dilemma. Instead of the rude, rather 

 suppressed teish with which we had been familiar, a sharp mew was heard, 

 scarcely distinguishable from the notes of the Cat-bird, found in the same 

 locality; and the song was a very decided improvement on that of the west- 

 ern individuals, for, instead of a short, simple trill, apparently "strained 

 out" after considerable effort, these trills were multiplied and connected by 

 other notes, so that a passable song resulted. There was still no approacli to 

 the notes of P. erythrophthalmus, however, excepting a very slight one in the 

 song; but the habits of the birds were nuich less shy, thougli they were 

 far from being so confidingly fiimiliar as the very tame eastern species. 



' Judging ft-om the circumstance that accessions from the Rociiy Mountain fauna 

 were first encountered at these two localities, it seems most probable that the Ground 

 Robins met with were also the Rocky Mountain form— 2'. megalonyx. 



2 "Ordinary call-note almost exactly like that of Mimm caroUncnsi.s ; the soiiy a 

 rather harsh and monotonous repetition of four or six syllables, sonu'tliin^' liUc that of 

 Euspiza americanaP — Pr. Ac. Nat. Sci , 18GG, p. 8!». 



