THE SAY PEWEE. 7 3 
townsite and voices in unexpectant cadences the universal yearning for green 
things and cessation of wind. 
A part of the drear impression made by this bird is occasioned by the 
time of year when it puts in an appearance, March at the latest, and, once at 
least, as early as February 20th (in Yakima County). Flies are an uncertain 
crop at this season, and it is doubtless rather from a desire for shelter than 
from inclination to society, that the species has so largely of late years re- 
sorted to stables and outbuildings. ‘Twenty years ago Say’s Pewee was un- 
known as a tenant of buildings in Yakima 
County. Now, there are few well-estab- 
lished farms in that part of the State 
which do not boast a pair somewhere 
about the premises; while hop-houses are 
recognized as providing just that degree 
of isolation which the bird really prefers. 
Say’s Pewee, for all its depressed 
spirits, is an active bird, and makes fre- 
quent sallies at passing insects. These 
constitute its exclusive diet save in early 
spring when, under the spell of adverse 
weather, dried berries are sought. But- 
terflies and moths are favorite food, but 
grasshoppers and beetles are captured as 
well; and the bird, in common with cer- dees 
tain other flycatchers, has the power of 
ejecting indigestible elytra and leg-sheath- SAY’S PEWEE. 
ings in the form of pellets. 
The males arrive in spring some days in advance of the females. Courtship 
is animated in spite of the melancholy proclivities of the bird; and the male 
achieves a sort of song by repeating ku-tew’s rapidly, on fluttering wing. 
Besides this, in moments of excitement, both birds cry Look at ‘ere, with 
great distinctness. 
Eggs are laid by the 1oth of April and usually at least two broods are 
raised, in this latitude. In the natural state these Pewees nest about cliffs, 
at moderate heights, and in shallow caves. In selecting a site, they show a 
decided preference for a cliff which enjoys the protection of nesting Prairie 
Falcons. A stout bracket of twigs, weed-fibers, lichens, and other soft sub- 
stances, is constructed, and a luxurious lining of wool and hair is supplied ; 
but the whole must be partially shielded by some projecting tooth or facet of 
stone, or artificial construction. 
The author in taking his first (and only) set of Say Pewee eggs selected a 
nest on the south wall of Brook Lake, reached only by canoe. The floor of an 
