82 General Notes. \^ll 



limbs of the same tree and although I was not more than twenty feet 

 below them thej paid no attention to me. I slapped the tree with my 

 hands, but instead of flying they merely turned their heads sideways, 

 watched me for a few moments and then took no further notice of me. 

 They were thick as blackbirds all over the valley and the Chinese garden- 

 ers were shooting them for food. 



October 13. I cannot reconcile myself to the amazing flight and fly- 

 catching peculiarities of Lewis's Woodpecker. It is difficult to believe 

 such things possible without having really seen them as it has been my 

 good fortune to do. To-day was but a repetition of what I saw them do 

 two days since. From a tree top they will shoot through the air a hundred 

 feet, at any angle or in any direction, stop short and then return to their 

 starting place without a perceptible beat of the wing. Those high in the 

 air were sailing in great circles. They kept it up indefinitely and had the 

 appearance of being so many miniature crows. When sailing they appear 

 to open their wings to the fullest extent possible. At times, however, 

 there is no mistaking the woodpecker flight. I saw it to-day for the first 

 time, not much, but it was woodpecker all the same. In the trees they sit 

 motionless, leaving them only to dash after some passing insect. Those 

 on the bodies of the trees, of which there were quite a number to-day, 

 ■would occasionally make a short move up, but not often. Now that the 

 pomegranate crop has been destroyed they have commenced to eat the 

 quinces, of which there are large quantities. On the tops of some of the 

 bushes I noticed that every quince had been eaten into, one side of 

 the fruit being generally eaten away. The weather to-day was cloudy 

 and warm. 



October 15. Lewis's Woodpeckers have suddenly left the valley. In a 

 tramp of about three hours I did not see more than a dozen. 



October 17. I saw, I think, the same bunch of Lewis's Woodpeckers I 

 did two days ago. They were about the same in number and were in the 

 same locality. They occupied what might be called a ' headquarters' tree 

 from which they refused to be driven. This is the third instance of the 

 kind I have seen. 



October 19. The blackbirds have come but the black woodpeckers have 

 gone. I did not see one of these wonderful birds to-day. 



October 21. Lewis's Woodpeckers are again here in their old time 

 numbers, but I did not observe anything more than usual in their move- 

 ments to-day. 



October 22. There appears to be no diminution in the number of 

 Lewis's Woodpeckers. Many were flying high, gyrating through the air 

 like crows over a dead carcass. The day was windy and warm. 



October 25. Lewis's Woodpeckers are still here in their usual numbers. 

 They are in beautiful plumage. If wounded they are very pugnacious 

 and will bite and claw the hands if opportunity is given. It seems to me 

 that they have an unusually large amount of blood in them. 



October 26. Lewis's Woodpeckers are still here, but far less numerous 

 than they were yesterday. 



