AMERICAN ORNITHOLOGY. 45 



of young firs near the stream was much more to my taste and gave a 

 far better opportunity to watch the birds. 



I soon found that this chorus arose from only two species of birds, 

 the Thick-billed Fox Sparrow (Passerella iliaca megarhynca) and the 

 Green-tailed Towhee. Then the perplexing question to decide was 

 from which bird any individual song came. Both are typical brush 

 birds and rarely, or only for short intervals, show themselves above 

 the surface, being perfectly satisfied with a life of obscure safety, lost 

 among the aisles of their miniature forest. How they even find their 

 own homes seems a mystery to the outsider, for the bushes look just 

 alike, and the granite blocks are tumbled in monotonous confusion 

 while miles upon miles of hillside are covered in the same way with 

 these hardy shrubs which grow in barren and rocky soil. 



I found, however, that the Thick-bill had more ambition than his fel- 

 low townsman, the Towhee, and would at times, mount high in the bare 

 trees near his nest, and there pour out his rich and melodious strain 

 for a considerable length ot time. His tone is more powerful and pene- 

 trating than that of the Towhee, and the song rather longer continued. 

 However, the Towhee's is by no means to be despised, in its shrill 

 sweetness, and when such a multitude sing together as I heard in 

 Strawberry Valley, the effect is delightful. The quality is finchlike, 

 not at all like that of the other Towhees. Surely the English name as 

 well as the Latin generic name should be a new one and belong alone 

 to this charming bird. 



The first nest which I found was built close to the stage road at a 

 height of about two feet from the ground, and near the top of a tangled 

 thicket of thorny ceanothus. I found it by chance, while spending the 

 hours in the heat of the day, watching some solitary wasps near by. 

 The pair were seen going in and out of the thicket, and became quite 

 accustomed to my presence before a friend put his hand on the nest. 

 It then contained four young with the eyes just opening. They re- 

 sponded to every jar of the bush by opening their beaks. They also 

 knew the voice of their parents. The peculiar mewing note, like that 

 of a young kitten "mew-mew-eep" was the only one used by them when 

 approaching the nest. They fed them altogether with small smooth 

 larvae, mostly green ones, and were very busy. 



During the mating period the female calls the male to her by a diff- 

 erent note — a chirp — and by displaying her pretty white throat in an 

 engaging attitude. The red top of the head is the most noticeable 

 feature, as it is raised and lowered in excitement. The yellowish green 

 color of the wings and tail only shows clearly during flight. This nest 

 full of young ones was unfortunate for some reason. They kept 



