The Townsend Solitaire 
ing music. At first it sings only on bright clear mornings; but once fairly 
in the mood, it sings at all hours and during the most inclement weather.” 
Mr. A. W. Anthony in an earlier volume of “The Condor” says:* 
“A few of the more favored have listened to its incomparable song, as, 
perched on the topmost twig of a dead fir, in the solemn silence of the 
high Sierras, or in deep and rugged canyons of the Rocky Mountains, 
this shy retiring bird pours forth its very soul in a wild ringing outburst 
of song that seems to descend from crags and ledges in a veritable shower 
of crystallized melody. With none of our song birds is the song so long 
1 Condor, Vol. V., Jan., 1903. P- 10. 
Taken in Ml. Shasta Photo by the Author 
A CLOSE-UP 
THE FEMALE, SEATED AT THE BASE OF A SHASTA FIR, IS STICKING TO HER EGGS AT A RANGE OF ONLY 
TWO FEET 
790 
