THE HUMMING BIRDS. 353 



tailed Hummiug Birds "ext^- seiy uiimerous; yoiiug birds were noti(;ed 

 August 1, aud by the l^ they became common. By August 1, the 

 males of this species began to get less numerous, and by the 10th there 

 were none ; in fact, I saw very few after that date. This is an extremely 

 interesting fact. Wherever I have been in the West, and for that 

 matter in the East also, I have always been led to wonder at the appar- 

 ent absence of males early in fall in localities where the females and 

 young were very numerous. The observations 1 was able to make here 

 solved the problem to my satisfaction. The truth appears to be that 

 immediately upon the young leaving the nest the males abandon their 

 summer limits and at once set out for their winter quarters, leaving the 

 females and young to follow at their convenience. 



In this locality at least there is an evident reason for this. Just 

 about this date the Scrophularia, which is the favorite food plant of 

 the Hummers, begins to lose its blossoms, and in a comparatively short 

 time the flowers give place to the seed pods. Though there are other 

 flowers which are resorted to by the Hummers, particularly several 

 species oi Pentstemon, they by no means aftbrd the luxurious living the 

 former plant does. It seems evident, therefore, that the moment its 

 progeny is on the wing, and its home ties severed, warned of the 

 approach of fall alike by the frosty nights and the decreasing supply 

 of food, oft" go the males to their inviting wiuter haunts, to be followed 

 not long after by the females and young. The latter — probably because 

 they have less strength — linger last, and may be seen even after every 

 adult bird has departed.''* 



In the San Francisco Mountains, Arizona, Dr. Merriam found them 

 "very abundant in the balsam belt and the upper part of the pine belt. 

 A nest containing two nearly fledged young was found on the limb of 

 a Douglas fir, about 4 feet from the ground, July 31. The principal 

 food plant of this Humming Bird is the beautiful scarlet trumpet flower 

 o^ Pentstemon barhatm torreyi. ' During the latter part of August and 

 early September, after it had ceased flowering, these birds were most 

 often seen in the beds of the large blue larkspur (Z)<?//?/inwMW sco/jw- 

 lorum); They wake up very early in the morning and go to water at 

 daylight no matter how cold the weather is. During the month of 

 August, and particularly the first half of the month, when the morn- 

 ings were often frosty, hundreds of them came to the spring to drink 

 and bathe at break of day. They were like a swarm of bees, buzzing 

 about one's head and darting to and fro in every direction. The air 

 was full of them. They would drop down to the water, dip their feet 

 and bellies, and rise and shoot away as if propelled by an unseen power. 

 They would often dart at the face of an intruder as if bent on piercing 

 the eye with their needle like bill, and then poise for a moment almost 

 within reach before turning, when they were again lost in the busy 

 throng. Whether this act was prompted by curiosity or resentment I 



* The Auk, vol. in, 1886, p. 75. 

 H. Mis. 129, pt. 2 23 



