520 LAND BIRDS 
neck yellowish olive, becoming brighter yellow on forehead and super- 
ciliary region ; wings with white bands; under parts lemon-yellow, 
fading to gray on belly ; throat usually with more or less of black. 
Young: Similar to female, but colors duller; no black on throat, and 
yellow sometimes almost wanting. 
Geographical Distribution: Western North America, north to British 
Columbia, east to and including the Rocky Mountains; south in 
winter to Mexico. 
California Breeding Range: Chiefly in the upper Sonoran zone through- 
out the State. 
Breeding Season: May and June. 
Nest: Fastened at sides and rim to branches of the birch, alder, cotton- 
wood, poplar, and often to bunches of mistletoe growing on cotton- 
wood trees; placed from 6 to 40 feet from the ground; made of 
vegetable fibres, horsehair, and inner bark woven together; lined 
with horsehair, down, and wool. 
Eggs: 3 to 6; grayish or bluish white, or pale buffy, marked with irreg- 
ular fine hair lines. Size 0.89 & 0.64. 
THE handsome Bullock Oriole fills the same niche in 
the country west of the Rocky Mountains that the 
equally handsome Baltimore oriole occupies in the 
Eastern States. Like the other two species found in Cali- 
fornia, it is only a summer visitant, arriving in March and 
going back to its winter haunts in late September. Like 
the Baltimore oriole, it loves the open country of the 
interior valleys, and the margins of streams fringed with 
alder ; it is never found in the deep forests or the higher 
altitudes, and seldom or never strays across the Coast 
Range into the humid coast region. 
Its call-notes and song resemble those of the Baltimore, 
but have less sweetness and variety. Where the latter 
whistles half a dozen variations on his original theme of 
five notes, the Bullock is content to repeat the same 
phrase with few modifications. Nor have I ever heard 
him give the love song that is poured out by the Balti- 
