BIRD NOTES AFIELD 



of Nevada, and in various portions of California. The horned 

 lark has been subdivided into a number of climatic races, 

 marked by slight differences in size and tone of color, but in 

 all, the back is buffy or vinaceous, sometimes pallid and some- 

 times ruddy, the head is strikingly marked with black ear-tufts 

 and cheek-patches, while a crescent of the same adorns the 

 breast. Otherwise the head is white, more or less strongly 

 tinged with yellow and the under parts are buffy. The 

 streaked horned lark is common along the San Francisco Bay 

 shore during the winter-time, nesting in more northern latitudes. 

 The crow family is well represented in California. Although 

 the crow itself is now exterminated about Berkeley, it is still 

 common in Marin County and on Angel Island in San Fran- 

 cisco Bay. In the southern part of the state the plowed fields 

 are fairly alive with them in the springtime — the same old 

 rascals that have gained such an unenviable reputation in the 

 east. Ravens frequent inaccessible cliffs by the sea or the 

 wastes of the interior plains. 



The crest of the Sierras separates the range of our two 

 magpies. They are identical in every respect save for the 

 color of the bill, which is black upon the eastern slope of the 

 Sierras and yellow in California. They are noisy, showy, 

 and highly entertaining birds, helping to enliven the dreary 

 desert wastes, where they are abundant near every trickling 

 stream of water. 



Several species of jays are found in California (including 

 the interesting Clark's nutcracker), in contrast to the one 

 species which occurs in the east. The two commonest forms 

 here are the blue-fronted and the California jays. Either the 

 blue-fronted or Steller's jay, the two being but geographical 



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