THE ASH-THRUATED FLYCATCHER. 377 



(ieneral Range. — Western United States and northern IMexico, nortli ir- 

 regnlarlv to \\'asliin.[,'t<in : ^outli in winter thru Mexico to Guatemala. 



Range in Washington. - llreeiHng near North Yakima in summer of 1903; 

 one other record, Tacoma Ma_\- 24. 1905. 



.Authorities. — Snodgrass (R. E.), .\uk. \'ol. XXI, .Apr. 1904, p. 229. B. 



Specimens. — ]'. C. 



l'*L\'C\TCI I1'",I\S are .somewhat given to wandering, or at least exploring, 

 on iheir own account, regardless of traditions. .A Gray Kitigbird (Tyraiunis 

 (ioniiiiicc'iisisj. nonnally confined to the Gulf of Mexico, is of record for Cape 

 Beale on X'ancouver Island: and that dashing gallant, the Scissor-tailed Fly- 

 catcher, of Te.xas, has ventured as far north as Hudson Bay. Tiie Ash- 

 throated Flycatcher is tyj^ically a bird of the soutii-western United States; 

 but it is not altogether surprising that it should have extended its northern 

 range into the Upper Sonoran bell of eastern Washington, as it did in the 

 season of 1903. when it was observed at North Yakima by Mr. Bowles, and, 

 independently, by Mr. Robert E. Snodgrass, the latter collecting for Pullman 

 College. Without precedent or excuse, however, was the appearance of a 

 handsome i)air near Tacoma, as recorded l)y Mr. Bowles, on the 24th day of 

 May, 1905. 



"The .\sh-lhroaled I'^lycatcher is i|nite expert upon tlie wing but ne\er 

 mdulges in protracted flight if it can help it. It seems to be rather quarrel- 

 some and intolerant in its disposition toward other birds, and will not allow 

 any to nest in close proximity: in fact. I am inclitied to believe tiiat it not in- 

 frequently dispossesses some of the stnaller Woodpeckers of their nesting sites. 



"Its food consists mainly of beetles, butterflies, grasshoppers, flies, moths, 

 and occasionally of berries, especially those of a species of mistletoe. 



"Bv the lieginning of May most oi the Ijirds are mated, and niditication 

 begins shortly afterward. The nests are usually placed in knot-holes of 

 mesquite, ash, oak, sycamore, juniper, and cottonwood trees, as well as in 

 cavities of old stumps, in Woodpeckers' holes, and occasionally behind loose 

 pieces of bark, in the manner of the Creepers. 



"The .Ash-throated Flycatcher ne.sts at various heights from the ground, 

 rarel}-, however, at greater distances than twenty feet. The nest varies con- 

 siderably in btilk according to the size of the cavity used. •Where this is large 

 the bottom is filled up with small weed-stems, rootlets, grass, and bits of dry 

 cow- or horse-manure, and on this fotmdation the nest proper is built. This 

 consists princi|)ally of a felted mass of hair and fur from different animals, 

 and occasionally of exuvi;c of snakes anrl small lizards : but these materials are 

 not nearl\- as generally used as in the nests of our eastern Crested Flycatciier — 

 it fact, it is the exception anfl not the rule to find such remains in their 

 nests" ( Bendire). 



