Mar., 1907 



THE CALIFORNIA DISTRIBUTION OF THE ROADRUNNER 



53 



northermost occurrence of the species an_vwhere in the United States. The three 

 actual northermost stations, all in Shasta County, are: Igo (Belding, I^and Bds. 

 Pac. Dist., 1890, p. 56), Fort Reading (Newberry, Pac. R. R. Rep. VI, 1857, p. 

 91), and Copper City, ten miles up Pitt River (Townsend, Proc. U. S. N. M. X, 

 1887, p. 204). 



It seems that the low-lying, and often swampy central portions of the San 

 Joaquin and Sacramento Valleys are not inhabited by the roadrunner; at least I 

 cannot find any records for that region. East of the Sierras the species occurs 

 north in the Owens Valley to Big Pine (Van Denburgh, Proc. Ac. Nat. Sc. Phila., 

 April 1898, p. 209). 



I am quite sure that the roadrunner does not now occur on any of the islands 

 off the California Coast. Cooper recorded it from Santa Catalina Island (Proc. 

 Cal. Ac. Sc. IV, Feb. 1870, p. 77); but neither myself nor any of the other late 

 visitors that I know of have found it there. 



The roadrunner in its distribution seems to follow very closely the limits of 

 the Upper and Lower Sonoran Zones (see map of "Isothermic Areas" in Pac. 

 Coast Avif. No. 3), especially in their arid and semiarid portions. I have found it 

 in the San Bernardino Mountains up to above 6000 feet altitude, but this was on 

 hot slopes where the Upper Sonoran Zone, as indicated by the flora, rises 

 even higher. 



Pasadena, Califoniia. 



STRAY NOTES FROM THE FEATHP:AD WOODS 

 BY p. M. vSILLOWAY 



JUNES, 1906.— Today for ithe first time I heard the singing of the white- 

 crowned sparrow {.Zonotnchia leucophrys) . The songster was sitting in a 

 tall dead pine tree, about midway up on a bare branch, and the song rang 

 out beautifully clear and bell-like, as no other sparrow-song heard in this region. 

 For a moment I felt all the thrill of a new sensation, the charm of a new voice in 

 the woodland chorus. Again and again it rang out, a repeated ripple of plaintive 

 wildwood melody. Finally I annotated it like this: TU/r, dcc-dle dee, dee dee. 

 The first syllable of the song is long drawn out, and the "dee-die dee" following 

 is remarkably sweet and liquid, vibrant and tinkling with mellowest silvery tone. 

 The closing syllables are more hurried and are obscured. 



