1,S6 THE CONDOR Vol.. X 



The first part of the voyage of the Vinegaroon over the Colorado Desert was 

 thoroly enjoyable. There was a cool, gentle breeze from the east. On the 

 north the bare rain-sculptured ridges of the Chocolate Mountains presented ever- 

 changing shades of brown, which give them their name. On the south rose the 

 eastern spurs of the Santa Rosa Mountains, a land of mystery to me then as re- 

 gards its animal life; but later in the summer the scene of many weeks of field 

 work. The western end of Salton Sea is very shallow, and over several square miles 

 the water is dotted with protruding bushes; and here and there rows of cottonwoods, 

 all dead, mark the site of former ranches. In passing one of these spots, our 

 propeller caught in a section of chicken-wire fencing, which was buoyed nearlj^ to 

 the surface by an attached fence-post. 



Fishes were plentiful — swarming by the hundreds along the railroad, where 

 refuse was regularly thrown from the trains to them. There were carp, "bony- 

 tail", or Colorado perch, and cat-fish. These formed a plentiful food-supply for 

 the fish-eating birds. The partly submerged telegraph poles each served as a 

 perch for from one to three cormorants; while Great Blue Herons were roosting on 

 the bush tops. A good many ducks were seen in the brush tracts close to shore, 

 but we found no evidence of their breeding. 



As we cruised along, further out on the open sea, we came up with flocks of 

 from 20 to 50 American Eared Oreh^s {Colymbus californiais) . Fully fifteen such 

 companies were encountered, their pro .dimity being detected usually thru hearing 

 their strange saw-filing calls. For the birds themselves were difficult to see at anj^ 

 distance on the water because of the glassy glare, this after the breeze began to die 

 out. Donham steered us into some of the flocks, and we succeeded in shooting 

 several of the grebes, tho as soon as alarmed they easily dove beyond the reach of 

 the clumsy Vinegaroon. Six Western Grebes i^Echviophorus occidentalh) were 

 encountered, flve in a company, and one lonely one. But they all quickly disap- 

 peared, as soon as the wheezing launch started in their direction. I have no reason 

 to believe that either the Eared or Western Grebe nest anywhere in the Salton Sea 

 region. They were probably at this date about to leave for their more northern 

 breeding grounds, the former nesting in numbers as far south at least as Bear Eake, 

 in the San Bernardino Mountains, only 60 miles away but in a much higher 



life zone. 



Fully a dozen Common L,oons ( Gavia uiiincr) in full plumage were seen 

 singly at a distance. And several Caspian Terns {Sterna rrt5/>/«) flew by out of 

 range. Cormorants {Phalacrocorax aiiritiis alhociUatns) kept flying curiously 

 across our bow, and the three we dropped kept us busy the rest of the day's voy- 

 age scraping grease. About noon all vestige of a breeze vanished; the water be- 

 came smooth and glary. We had no awning; and the desert sun beat down on our 

 backs, leaving burns which constantly recalled the experience for a week after- 

 ward. Scraping grease from fishy seabirds on an open boat in the frying sun is 

 one phase of collecting well worth avoiding— if one can. 



All along our course a number of immature Ring-billed Gulls {Lanis dela- 

 zvarensis) were repeatedly seen, evidently keeping us in view for the sake of the 

 pieces of meat and fat we kept throwing overboard. 



About one o'clock a curious shifting mirage made its appearance ahead, an- 

 nouncing the location of our first objective point. But it was not until three- 

 thirty that we reached it. 



Echo Island lies twelve miles or more south of the present station of Eano 

 which is somewhere in the vicinit}^ of the old station of Volcano, now sul^merged. 

 As we neared the Island, a curious frosted patch became conspicuous on the 



