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SCIENCE 



[N. S. Vol. XXVI. No. 656 



gray Gnatcatclier, sixteen days. During the 

 warm days of early April the Euby-crowned 

 Kinglet was seen six days ahead of the aver- 

 age date. At the end of the hot wave, April 

 6, all the birds due were present except the 

 purple martin, due March 28, and not seen 

 until April 5 — the latest date for the past 

 seven years. The severe cold spell lasted from 

 April 6 to April 24. During this time only 

 seven species appeared of the twenty species 

 due; one, the spotted sandpiper, a single day 

 late, the others an average of seven days late. 

 During the cold weather, the house wren ap- 

 peared at several places three days early and 

 a single wandering wood thrush was seen six 

 days ahead of time. 



A large wave of migration occurred during 

 the nights of April 25 and 26. Fourteen new 

 species appeared and three more reported the 

 following day very probably arrived a day 

 earlier than they were seen. Thus about one 

 sixth of all the species of migrant land-birds 

 usually seen here during the spring arrived in 

 two days. These arrivals were from two to 

 nine days late. They included all the miss- 

 ing birds except the grasshopper sparrow and 

 the black-throated green warbler, each of 

 which was diligently sought in favorite 

 haunts, but not seen until much later. This 

 pronounced bird wave also brought with it 

 some birds ahead of time, e. fir., the kingbird 

 and the scarlet tanager each four or five days 

 early. 



After April 2Y for the rest of the migration 

 season of 1907 the weather conditions were 

 nearly normal and the arrival dates were quite 

 close to the average; eighteen species averaged 

 three days late, sixteen species three days 

 early and three species were seen on the 

 average date. The average dates referred to 

 have been deduced from more than thirty 

 years records of arrivals in the files of the 

 Bureau of Biological Survey. 



Dr. Barton W. Evermann gave a lantern 

 slide lecture on " The Golden Trout and the 

 Southern High Sierra." The investigations 

 which resulted in the discovery of two unde- 

 scribed species of golden trout of great beauty 

 and value were undertaken by the Bureau of 

 Fisheries at the instance of President Roose- 



velt, to whom had been represented their 

 threatened extermination. The speaker and 

 his party in the summer of 1904 entered the 

 • Kem River region, the native habitat of the 

 golden trout, by pack train, and explored the 

 Kern River basin, obtaining collections of the 

 fishes, particularly the trout. The artist of 

 the expedition made water color paintings of 

 the principal trouts, including the two hand- 

 some new species Salmo roosevelti and S. 

 whiiei. Four species of trout of the rainbow 

 series inhabit the Kern River basin. Chiefly 

 in Kern River occurs abundantly 8. gilberti, 

 a trout without golden colors but from which 

 the three golden trout have descended. The 

 latter have lost the rainbow hues and in part 

 the black spots of the Kem River species and 

 taken on the characteristic golden and allied 

 bright colors. Their separation from the 

 parent stock and from each other is a result 

 of their isolation in tributaries of the Kern, 

 by the formation of impassable waterfalls and 

 by barriers due to volcanic action. The most 

 interesting and strikingly colored species — 

 the most brilliant of its family — the Roose- 

 velt trout, is found only in Volcano Creek. 

 It, together with its congeners of the region, 

 will be exterminated in a few years unless 

 measures are taken to protect it. Fish culture 

 and legal restrictions should combine to per- 

 petuate it. In accordance with the recom- 

 mendations resulting from the investigations 

 a close season for two years has been estab- 

 lished, with continuing restrictions thereafter, 

 and a movement is under way to extend the 

 Giant Forest Reservation to include Volcano 

 Creek. 



The 432d meeting and last of the season 

 was held May 18, 190Y, President Stejneger in 

 the chair. The evening was chiefly taken up 

 with an exhibition of projection apparatus 

 with short descriptions by members of objects 

 brought by them for illustration. The ap- 

 paratus combined ordinary, micro, vertical and 

 opaque projection, and lantern slides, micro- 

 scopical preparations, living fishes and other 

 opaque objects were shown on the screen. 



M. C. Marsh, 

 Recording Secretary 



