THE NIDIOLOGIST 



123 



Cooper Ornithological Club. 



THE March Ornithological meeting was 

 held at San Jose. The election of Mr. 

 E. D. Parker, of Pasadena, by the Annex 

 was approved. The resignation of H. R. Taylor, 

 as President of the Club, was accepted, being 

 occasioned by his removal from the State. 

 The election of a new president was postponed 

 one month. 



A paper on the Western Blue Grosbeak by 

 W. B. Judson was read. It was noted as arriving 

 at Pasadena about April i, and departing in 

 August. Snake skin is generally used in the 

 construction of its nests. 



Mr. Grinnell presented a paper on Cassin's 

 Purple Finch. It is an occasional visitant 

 about Pasadena. A flock of about fifty were 

 observed on January 12 near Wilson's Peak, at 

 an elevation of 5,000 feet. The birds were 

 scattered through the bush, apparently feeding 

 on seeds and buds. When shot into the flock 

 flew into the highest pines. Their notes were 

 somewhat like those of C. mex.f7'ontalis^ though 

 the quality was much fuller and deeper, like the 

 warble of a Robin. Notes on the Western 

 Savannah and Western Grasshopper Sparrows 

 were read. The former are confined to mead- 

 ows or stubble fields, where they scatter out to 

 feed. Their food, as discovered by dissection, 

 consists entirely of seeds of various grasses and 

 plants, and also the cotyledons of sprouting 

 weeds. Thus they may be said to be beneficial 

 in preventing the growth of much noxious 

 vegetation. The Western Grasshopper Sparrow 

 was observed in the winter of 1891-92, when 

 they were found in an uncultivated field and 

 were difficult to flush. 



On Thurber's Junco. 



Thurber's Junco was discussed in a paper by 

 Ralph Arnold. They are very common in 

 winter in the valleys, associating with the Spar- 

 rows, but retire to the higher mountain ranges 

 to breed. While feeding on the ground in 

 flocks they generally move all in the same 

 direction in a jerky manner. Their principal 

 diet is seeds. The first nest noted by Mr. 

 Arnold was found June 10, 1892, and contained 

 four fresh eggs. The nest was composed of dry 

 grass and fibers loosely put together, and situ- 

 ated in a small hole on the side of a bank. 

 The bird flew from the nest, thus attracting 

 attention. June 12, 1892, another nest was 

 found under a small pile of rubbish in a ravine 

 which contained five slightly incubated eggs, 

 and was well hidden by an overhanging bank. 

 On the road through the Mariposa Grove of big 

 trees many nests were seen in the banks along 

 the graded roads. Most of these had large 



young'ones, and some had been deserted by the 

 young. One nest containing three slightly in- 

 cubated eggs was taken on July 13, 1892. 

 Nest of fibers and horsehair. Mr. Gaylord dis- 

 covered a nest at Wilson's Peak in June, 1893, 

 which held three badly incubated eggs. The 

 color of the eggs was so deceptive that it was 

 by chance they were found to be incubated. 

 They were of a very light lilac color, marked 

 principally around the larger end with small 

 points and blotches of brown and lilac. One 

 nest noted in the roots of an upturned tree in 

 Los Angeles, Gal., June 6, 1891, held four full- 

 fledged young. 



The April meeting of the Club was held at 

 College Park, April 6. Mr. W. Otto Emerson 

 was elected President for 1895, to fill Mr, 

 Taylor's unexpired term. Messrs. T. E. Slevin 

 and H. C. Johnson, of San Francisco, were 

 elected to membership. 



The Western Evening Grosbeak. 



H. B. Kaeding, of Amador County, gave 

 some observations on the Western Evening 

 Grosbeak. They were noted in unusually large 

 numbers the past fall and winter, the first flock 

 of about fifty birds being observed on October 

 29. They were common afterward throughout 

 the winter, going in flocks of from twenty to 

 one hundred and more. They exhibited very 

 little fear of man, hopping about unconcernedly 

 from bough to bough, and keeping up a con- 

 tinual " talk," sometimes stopping to inspect 

 the intruder. They fed principally on the 

 grass and clover seeds, though very partial to 

 the seeds of the locust trees, to which they 

 would often come in large numbers, cracking 

 and shaking the dried pods with a vim. On 

 rainy days they seemed depressed, often sitting 

 for an hour huddled on the trees, scarcely mov- 

 ing. During January the flocks divided to an 

 average of ten to fifteen birds, although oc- 

 casionally large flocks would be seen very high 

 up. In February they separated to groups of 

 three or four, generally four, and nearly always 

 two males and two females, thus showing they 

 had begun mating. Single pairs were frequent- 

 ly seen. The last of the Grosbeaks observed 

 Avere a pair flyiiig north on February 28, pre- 

 sumably male and female. 



Three Grosbeaks which had been wounded 

 were kept from about December i to the ist 

 of March on a diet of wheat; but although they 

 did well for a while, all died at about the time 

 of their usual migration, from what cause was 

 not ascertained. 



Curious Nesting of the House Finch. 



Mr. Kaeding observed last June a nest of 

 House Finches with four half -fledged young built 



