Mr. H. E. Dresser on the Birds of Southern Texas. 483 



a single fresh egg. I had no trouble in identifying it, as the 

 bird remained in the same tree the whole time. 



The nest of this bird is bulky, generally composed of prickly 

 sticks, lined with grass and fine roots, and not unlike a Magpie^s 

 nest on a small scale. The egg much resembles that of Harpo- 

 rhynchus rufus, but is of a rather brighter colour. They are fond 

 of frequenting small villages, and I have generally found the 

 nests in the gardens or courtyards of the houses near the road. 



Male. Bill blackish ; legs light brown ; iris light orange-yel- 

 low. Stomach containing beetles and caterpillars. 



Campylorhynchus BRUNNEiCAPiLLUs (Lafrcsnayc) . Brown- 

 headed Wren. 



In December 1863, when at Eagle Pass, I noticed several of 

 these birds amongst the cactuses on the sand-plains near the 

 village. They were very shy and difficult to shoot, as they 

 dodged through the bushes, running very swiftly. Between 

 Eagle Pass and the Rio Nueces I noticed a few, but further north 

 and east of that river I never saw any. In July 1864, after 

 passing the Nueces on my way to Laredo and Matamoras, I 

 observed numerous nests on the roadside. Some were half- 

 finished, and probably deserted in that state; others contained 

 young birds ; while others, again, were already left by the young 

 birds. In one only did I find eggs. They were three in num- 

 ber, and I now have them in my collection. The nest of this 

 bird is composed externally of light-coloured straws, and inter- 

 nally of cotton, if placed near the roads along which cotton was 

 being hauled; but otherwise, of feathers of every description; 

 indeed by tearing up an old nest I could form a pretty good idea 

 of the birds frequenting that part of the country. In the lining 

 of one I tore up, between Guerrero and Laredo, I could distin- 

 guish feathers of five difierent species of birds. 



The nest, which is purse- or poke-shaped, is generally placed 

 on the top of a dead bush in some exposed place, or between 

 the large leaves of a cactus plant ; and the eggs (which, to judge 

 from the number of young I noticed in several nests and the one 

 nest I took, are from three to four in number) are of a peculiar 

 dark salmon-colour. 



Male. Bill blackish ; lower mandible dull light bluish at the 

 base; legs flax-brown ; iris reddish-brown. 



