The Dawson Leuco 



While it is true that the nest-hunter's day is punctuated by such 

 episodes as these, the reader should be reminded that hours of unrewarded 

 vigil precede or follow these occasional flashes of revelation. The rigors 

 of the evening hours, which are the best for observation, are most right- 

 eously offset by the ardors of midday, when, if one is obliged to be 

 exposed, he feels more like a roasted marmot than a self-respecting 

 scientist. More than once under the intolerable glare I have confessed 

 myself "plumb leucoed," and" have beaten for shelter. 



The nests of the Leucos are always fully sheltered. They are set 

 back in niches or placed under boulders, sometimes in chambers of 

 generous proportions, and always beyond the reach of rain or snow. The 

 birds show wisdom, too, in avoiding the established paths of falling rocks 

 or melting snows. The Leucos themselves are fully alive to the danger of 

 avalanches and there is an uneasy movement, or a sudden taking to wing, 

 whenever a rock-fragment "lets go" in their neighborhood. 



Some of the nests are drab-looking affairs, especially where weathered 

 grasses are the only materials obtainable. Some, however, are wonder- 

 fully compacted of mosses, and are lined with feathers or other soft sub- 

 stances. An example in the M. C. O. collection 

 has a black flight-feather of the Clark Nutcracker 

 set at a rakish angle in its brim. Another boasts 



a Rock Wren's plume, 

 and has a lining of cot- 

 ton, feathers, and human 



Taken in the Grand Cirque Photo by the Author 



THE OOLOGIST IN CAMP 



AT THESE ALTITUDES dl.OOO FEET) THE CAMPER-OUT IS GLAD TO TAKE REFUGE BEHIND A SCREEN 

 OF LIMBER PINE (Pinus Jlexilis) 



174 



