lMi;il).l'; — TlIK WOODI'KCKKUS. 581 



(Hioted by ^Ii'. AudulKni, stiitL's tluit he lirst ciiiiu' u\)nu tliis l)inl in tlus <\;\y- 

 I'ow licit of loix'st wliitii lionliTs Liiniiiiic's Koi'k of the I'liit'i', ami lulds 

 that lio scarooly lost si^'iit of it from tiiiit time until Ik; ri'iiclu'd liiu shores 

 of the I'lU'ilic. Its mamiers, in id! respects, are so cMtircly similar to those 

 of the common species that the same dcscriiilion applies to liolh. Ife also 

 rej^ards it as the shyer liird ol' the two, and less fretiuently seen on the 

 ground. They Ijurrow in the oak and pine trees, and Iny white e^'j,'s, after 

 the manner of the whole family, and these eggs are in no wise distinguisli- 

 iiblo from those of the (jolden-wing. 



Dr. Cooper, in his Report upon the birds of California, refers to this as a 

 common species, and found in every jiart of the State except the liaro plains. 

 It even I'reciuents the k)W bushes, where no trees are to be seen for miles. 

 In the middle wooded districts, and towards the north, it is much more 

 abundant than elsewhere. 



Their nesting-holes are at all heights from the ground, and are usually 

 about one foot in depth. In the southern jiart of the State their eggs are 

 laid in April, but farther north, at the Cohmibia, in ]\Iay. 



Dr. Coo])er attributes their shyness in certain localities to their lieing 

 hunted so nuich by the Indians for their bright feathers. (Icnerally he 

 found them (piito tame, so that their intcsrestiug liaiiits may lui watched 

 without diiliculty. He regards tliem as an exact coimterpavt ol' the eastern 

 auratus, living Inrgely on insects and ants, which they collect without miicii 

 trouble, and do not depend niton hard work, like other Woodpeckers, for their 

 food. During the season they also i'eed largely on berries. Their curved 

 bill is not well adapted for hammering sound wood for insects, and they only 

 dig into decayed tiees in search of their food. Like the eastern species, the 

 young of these birds, when their nest is ii]i])roaclu'd, make a curious hissing 

 iioiso. They nifiy bo seen chasing each other round th(( trunk of trees, as 

 if in sport, uttering, at the sanm time, hjud cries like irliittoa, irliillati, n-li'iUoo. 

 Dr. Kennerly found these birds from the Big '' ..ndy to the Great Colorado, 

 but they were so shy that he could not obtain a sjiecimen. They wee seen 

 on the barren liills among the large cacti, in which they nest. Their extreme 

 shyness was fully oxpl lined afterwards by finding how closely they are 

 hunted by the Indians loj- the sake of their feathers, of which head-dresses 

 are made. 



Mr. Dresser states that this bird is found as far east as San Antonio, where, 

 however, it is of uncommon occurrence. In Decend)cr ho noticed sevoml 

 near the Nueces River, and in February and March obtained others near 

 Piedras Xegras. 



Dr. Coues gives it as aLimdant: and resident in Arizona, where it is I'ouud 

 in all situations. Its tongue, lu>, states, is cajiable of protrusion to an extent 

 far beyond that of any other Xt^i Lh American Woodpecker. 



This bird, in .some parts of California, is known as the Yellow-Ilammer, a 

 name given in some parts of New England to the Culaptcs aamtast. Mr. 



