° 1911 J Saunders, Birds of Gallatin Co., Mont. 47 



summer resident in willow thickets in the mountains above 7,000 feet. 

 This species arrives early in June and departs in September. During 

 migrations it is quite abundant for a short time in the valleys. 



177. Setophaga ruticilla. Redstart. — Summer resident in cot- 

 tonwoods, willows and alders in the valleys and in the lower mountain 

 canons. It arrives late in May and is not common. 



178. Anthus rubescens. Pipit. — Common fall migrant, appearing 

 in the valleys about the middle of September and remaining until the 

 latter part of October. It is often in company with Horned Larks. I 

 have not seen this species in spring. 



179. Cinclus mexicanus unicolor. Dipper. — Permanent resident 

 in the mountain canons. In winter I have occasionally seen these birds 

 near Bozeman on Bozeman Creek and the East Gallatin River, but only 

 in places where the water runs swiftly. Most of them remain in the moun- 

 tain canons all winter where they sing better and more frequently in 

 February and March than at any other time of year. In 1909 I found 

 four nests of this species placed on beams of bridges, and this seems to be 

 a very common location for them in this region. Out of eight nests found, 

 only one was placed in the traditional location, beside a waterfall where 

 the spray kept the moss fresh. The rest were on bridges, on rocks above 

 the water, and one in the beams of a splash dam. In the latter case the 

 dam was in use when the birds were building and was opened and closed 

 twice a day so that the water sometimes flowed over the top and some- 

 times through at the bottom. The birds attempted to build as close to the 

 water as possible and thus had two locations for their nest. The water, 

 however, kept removing the material from the lower site so that the upper 

 nest was finally completed and occupied. 



180. Oreoscoptes montanus. Sage Thrasher. — I found this bird 

 in the East Flathead Valley on June 8, 1909. Richmond and Knowl- 

 ton noted it in the Gallatin Valley and secured a specimen. Like the 

 other sagebrush species it has probably entirely disappeared from the 

 Gallatin Valley since then. 



181. Dumetella carolinensis. Catbird. — Common summer resi- 

 dent in the willow thickets in the valleys. It arrives late in May and 

 leaves about the 10th of September. 



182. Salpinctes obsoletus. Rock Wren. — Summer resident. This 

 bird is quite common in the limestone rocks of the northern part of the 

 county, occurring along the Missouri River and on Sixteen Mile Creek 

 and its branches. I have not found it in other parts of the county. I be- 

 lieve that the reason for this is the character of the country rather than 

 the elevation, because it occurs at much higher elevations in neighboring 

 counties. 



183. Troglodytes aedon parkmani. Western House Wren. — 

 Summer resident but not common. This species arrives about May 20 

 and nests about buildings in the valleys. 



184. Cistothorus stellaris. Short-billed Marsh Wren. — I ob- 



