The Western Gnatcatcher 
Taken in 
Monterey 
County 
nest is authentically “dead.” In a 
burned-over section of the Sierras 
one pair of birds decorated duti¬ 
fully with bits of charred 
bark. 1 
Some immediate 
protection from the 
sun is a necessity for 
most of our tree-nesting 
birds; hence, a bunch of 
leaves will almost invar¬ 
iably be discovered, 
whether near or remote, 
which shades the Gnat- 
catcher’s nest at the 
critical hour. The 
western bird does not, 
however, like its eastern 
representative, seek 
shelter beneath some 
protecting limb or over¬ 
shadowing trunk. 
The temptation to 
look in upon some par¬ 
ticular scene, of the score 
whose images crowd memory’s portal, is irresistible. Shall it be of the 
birds found near “The Pinnacles” in San Benito County? The date is 
May 17, 1916: We heard “business” of gnatcatchers; and though we 
knew r there were two, our eye followed only the more active one while 
he traversed the tree in amiable, leisurely fashion, and then made off 
unconcernedly to another tree. I was about to suggest our moving on, 
when Bert said, “But vTat became of the other bird?” Sure enough, 
there were two of them. The other bird I spied, firm planted in her nest 
on a horizontal limb of the oak about 10 feet up. We approached from 
above through the tree to within a foot or two, when the bird flushed, 
and we saw five eggs, which we took to be rather advanced in incubation. 
At least that is the solace we gave ourselves. As matter of fact, when I 
returned with the Graflex to photograph, the inevitable happened, and 
I lost my heart to this brace of fairies. If one has a “scientific” duty 
to perform in case of this dainty tribe, he has to work quickly. The 
Photo by 
the Author 
'FIRM PLANTED IN HER NEST” 
‘‘‘Some Architectural Traits of the Western Gnatcatcher,” by Corydon Chamberlain: “Condor,” Vol. III. 
March, 1901, p. 35. 
814 
