TEXAS NATURE OBSEKVATIONS AND REMINISCENCES. 85 



sure at quite a distance.) "When 

 crouching on a tree limb or on its 

 breeding place, only the gray or 

 dark reddish brown and dotted 

 colors are noticed, with perhaps 

 the circular white lines around its 

 neck, but, in its flying or spread 

 out position, as seen on the photo 

 herein, the large white dotted 

 wings and tail feathers of the 

 buUbat are prominently exposed, 

 while the balance of the body oft- 

 en simulates its surroundings as 

 seen on the photo. 



quite limb, the bird is often pas- 

 sed by unrecognized, as the bark 

 of the mesquite tree, with its 

 longitudinal and corrugated ap- 

 pearance of its protuberances and 

 interliniattions of more or less 

 broad bands of a light bluish-gray 

 or dark brown color, simulates the 

 outlines of its host closely. And all 

 this leads one to reflect : Are these 

 distinct traits in the life history 

 of our Texas buUbat bird merely 

 "instinct" or rather deliberate 

 reasoning ? 



BuLLBATS Just Hatched. Photo on the Spot Found 

 (Slightly Enlarged From the Original Photograph) 



And equally remarkable is the 

 fact, that this interesting buUbat, 

 even the young birds, as soon as 

 able to fly, will seek a tree branch, 

 with preference to that of a mes- 

 quite tree to rest on, after hours of 

 i3ontiuuous flying abroad after 

 night insects; and always, as ji 

 rule, such branch is selected after 

 repeated and continuous circular 

 tours of inspection, which closely 

 simulates its body markings; and 

 when crouching at rest on a mes- 



I was closing this chapter,, when, 

 last Sunday, in company with my 

 friend, A. Haubold, we endeavor- 

 ed to find the same place again 

 we had found the Sunday pre- 

 vious — a breeding buUbat on its 

 eggs on the ground below a mes- 

 quite bush. We had marked the 

 bush with strips of paper and 

 white rags, in order to more easi- 

 ly find the place again. This, how- 

 ever, was not quite as easy as ex- 

 pected. "We had to pass several 



