68 LIFE HISTORIES OF NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS. 



and 0.84 by 0.64 inch, respectively. By the above measurements one will readily 

 see that the eggs average very evenly. They are of a pearly white color, and 

 seem to taper off, being more pointed at the small end than is usually the case 

 among the Picidcc. The male of this pair (for these were the only ones seen in 

 the vicinity) was shot a little while before at the brook. I afterwards observed 

 some of these birds among the oaks in the foothill canyons, hearing their notes 

 for the first time. Dr. Cooper mentions taking the female from the nest, and 

 perhaps this may be characteristic of the species — indeed, it may be of fre- 

 quent occurrence among Woodpeckers; but of the many Woodpeckers' nests 

 that I have examined none have been so persistent in holding the fort as Dryo- 

 bates nuttattii." 



Their food appears to consist mainly of insects and their larva?, and prob- 

 ably occasionally of berries and fruits. Its favorite nesting sites ai-e in oaks, 

 sycamores, cottonwoods, and occasionally in elders, willows, and the giant cactus, 

 generally in dead limbs or old stubs, and usually at no very great height from 

 the ground. Nidification usually commences early in April and continues 

 through May. Only one brood is raised in a season, but if the eggs are taken 

 a second set is laid about two weeks later. Both sexes assist in the excavation 

 of the nesting site, as well as in incubation, which lasts probably about fourteen 

 days. Nuttall's Woodpecker, like the majority of this family, is a devoted 

 parent, and loath to leave its eggs or young, frequently allowing itself to be 

 caught on the nest. It is a very beneficial species to the horticulturist, and 

 deserves the fullest protection. The number of eggs to a set varies from four 

 to six, sets of four being most often found. They are usually short ovate in 

 shape, occasionally ovate. The shell is fine grained, strong, pure white in color, 

 and rather glossy. 



The average measurement of twenty-two specimens in the United States 

 National Museum collection is 21.34 by 16.19 millimetres, or about 0.84 by 0.64 

 inch. The largest egg measures 23.62 by 16 millimetres, or 0.93 by 0.63 inch; 

 the smallest, 19.30 by 15.75 millimetres, or 0.76 by 0.62 inch. 



The type specimen, No. 26631 (not figured), from a set of four eggs, Ralph 

 collection, was taken near Lakeside, San Diego County, California, on May 5, 

 1890. 



28. Dryobates arizonae (Hargitt). 



ARIZONA WOODPECKER. 



Pious arizonae Hargitt, Ibis, 1886, 115. 



Dryobates arizonae Ridgway, Manual of North American Birds, 1887, 286. 

 (B — , C — , R 365, C 437, TJ 398.) 



Geographical range: Southern Arizona, southwestern New Mexico, and adjacent 

 portions of western Mexico to Zacatecas and Jalisco. 



The range of the Arizona Woodpecker within the United States is a rather 

 restricted one, it having as yet been obtained only in the Chiricahua, Huaehuca, 

 Santa Rita, and Santa Catalina mountains, in southern Arizona, and on the east 



