° 1918 J Dice, Birds of Southeastern Washington. 159 



swing, and on March 15 the temperature reached as low as -1° F. at 

 Prescott. With the ground partly covered by snow, thousands died before 

 the weather moderated. 



A nest found on April 23, 1906, two miles east of Prescott in an apple tree, 

 contained one egg. On April 27 there were three eggs and later another 

 was added. On May 3 one of the eggs was missing and the nest contained 

 the headless body of a White-footed Mouse (Peromyscus maniculatus 

 gambelii), which the robin was brooding with the eggs. On May 6 all the 

 eggs were gone and the nest deserted. Another nest was found on April 28, 

 1906, and still another on May 13. On May 2, 1908, a freshly completed 

 nest was found 20 feet high in a locust tree. One egg was laid between 

 8: 30 and 9:15A.M. on May 4. Another egg was laid between 9: 30 and 

 10:30 A. M. on May 5. The female was disturbed while on the nest late 

 on this evening and the nest was abandoned. On May 8, 1908, three nests, 

 all in the last stages of construction, were found. Half-fledged and nearly- 

 fledged young were abundant in early June, 1908. On April 9, 1913, a nest 

 nearly completed was found. In 1915 a nest containing fully-fledged young 

 was seen June 30. On May 18, 1908, a nest containing one egg was found 

 on a post in a barn in the hills southwest of Prescott. On May 28 it con- 

 tained four eggs. This nest was constructed of string, horse hair, and 

 straw, but, probably owing to the scarcity o£ water, very little mud was 

 used to plaster the nest. 



Ixoreus nsevius naevius. Varied Thrush. — During the blizzard 

 of early March, 1906, great numbers appeared near Prescott and many 

 were killed. One was seen on April 1, 1913, and another on April 20 in 

 the trees along the Touchet River. In 1915 they were noted rarely from 

 Nov. 7 to Dec. 3. S. H. Lyman has seen them in the Blue Mountains in 

 the fall and says they often appear in winter at Dayton. 



Sialia mexicana occidentalis. Western Bluebird. — Reported 

 at Walla Walla (Belding, 1890, 262). From Nov. 13 to 15, 1915, a small 

 flock was observed in an open field of the Touchet Valley and at the edge 

 of timber near Prescott. On July 23, 1914, several were seen in yellow pine 

 forest near Hompeg Falls. 



Sialia currucoides. Mountain Bluebird.— Dawson and Bolles 

 (1909, 260) give a breeding record for Wallula. One was seen June 18, 

 1914, on a telephone post in the prairie near Eureka. They occur sparingly 

 in summer in the bunch-grass hills in the neighborhood of Prescott, and 

 some are reported to breed in the town. In late July and early August, 

 1914 numbers were seen in open alpine fir forest on high ridges of the Blue 

 Mountains, and a few were seen in yellow pines on a lower ridge. 



Spring arrival dates near Prescott are March 14. 1905 and March 4, 1908. 



