400 Wetmore, Birds of Lake Burford, N. Mex. [juIy 



44. Colaptes cafer collaris Vigors. Red-shafted Flicker. Flickers 

 were fairly common in this area. One pair nested in a dead Cottonwood 

 near the spring hole above the cabin and others were breeding nearby. 

 These birds spent much time in feeding on the ground in the sage brush. 

 Ants were very abundant here so that food was easily secured. 



45. Chordeiles virginianus henryi Cassin. Western Nighthawk. 

 The first nighthawk, a female, arrived at Lake Burford on June 2. A 

 male was heard calling and booming on June 6 and the birds were fairly 

 common until June 16. On the following day there was a great increase 

 in their numbers and evidently the bulk of the breeding birds arrived at 

 this time. These birds frequented the rocky ridges covered with open 

 forest above the lake, but came down over the flats to feed. On the 

 evening of June 17 a number of pairs were seen and males were calling 

 and booming excitedly. Locally it is believed that the male has a hole in 

 either wing that he opens in producing the loud whirring boom, as he 

 dashes down through the air. 



46. Aeronautes melanoleucus (Baird). White-throated Swift. 

 The high cliffs of light-colored sandstone in the canyons near Lake Bur- 

 ford furnished suitable nesting sites for these swifts and the birds were 

 fairly common about the ledges. From May 30 until June 4 flocks of 

 them seemed to be in migration and were seen circling high in the air or 

 feeding over the flats. Near the cabin they joined bands of Violet-green 

 Swallows that were coursing back and forth above the sage brush, feeding 

 on the swarms of chironomids driven in here by the wind. A few were 

 collected here but it was difficult to pick them out from the innumerable 

 swallows and shoot before they bad darted away out of range. The call 

 note of this bird is a shrill laughing he he he he heard usually when two or 

 three are coursing along together. 



47. Selasphorus platycercus (Swainson). Broad-tailed Humming- 

 bird.— This hummingbird was fairly common about Lake Burford and 

 was seen daily among the pines and pinyons or crossing the flats. 



48. Tyrannus vociferans Swainson. Cassin's Kingbird. — This 

 Kingbird was first observed on May 25 and from then on it was fairly 

 common. They frequented rocky hillsides where scattered Yellow Pines 

 rising above the low undergrowth made convenient perches from which 

 to watch for insects and look out over the valleys. The birds nested 

 here in small numbers and males were seen at intervals in crazy zigzag 

 sky dances made to the accompaniment of harsh calls and odd notes, 

 similar to those of none of our other birds. Toward dusk they called 

 constantly their harsh, stirring notes making a pleasing sound that 

 mingled with the songs of House and Rock Wrens, the scolding of an 

 occasional Mockingbird and the cheerful calls of the Robins. 



49. Myiarchus cinerascens cinerascens (Lawrence). Ash-throated 

 Flycatcher. — One was found among cedars on a sage-covered hillside 

 on the afternoon of May 26. 



