350 ORNITHOLOGICAL NOTES FROM THE WEST. 
parts of the mountains were found three essentially arctic species 
that were not met with below the region of snow. ese were 
the tit-lark, the gray-crowned finch (Lewcosticta griseinucha) and 
the white-tailed ptarmigan (Lagopus leucurus). The tit-lark was 
abundant, rearing its young here, some of which were hardly able 
to fly as late as the last week of July. The gray-crowned finch 
and the ptarmigan were both common. The latter descends into 
the timber in winter, when great numbers are killed for food by 
the miners. The only ducks seen in the alpine region was a single 
pair of the common goosander. A single gadwall shot on the 
Platte in South Park was the only other species of the duck tribe 
met with on the present journey. 
Near Colorado City two or three species of birds not yet men- 
tioned were obtained or observed. One of these was the little 
known Rocky Mountain swift (Panyptela melanoleuca) which was 
quite numerous about the high cliffs in the “ Garden of the Gods’, 
and of which with great difficulty we procured four specimens. 
It was nesting in inaccessible crevices and weatherworn holes in 
the rocks, about midway up the high vertical cliffs, some of which 
are not less than three hundred feet high. They seemed very re 
for so small birds, and flew with great velocity, rarely descending 
within reach of our guns. The ground tit ( Chamea fasciata ) 
was met with a few times, and on one of our excursions We saw 
a party of a dozen or fifteen woodpeckers of a species as yet pi 
parently undescribed, and of which, unfortunately, 2° specimen 
was obtained. They were very wary, and led us 4 long ie 
over very broken country, at no time permitting us to app: 
within range of them. One was badly wounded, but a 
succeeded in escaping. It was a species of the size and habits 
Lewis’s' woodpecker, rising, like that» species, almost V iil 
into the air in pursuit of insects, but was quite differently ¢° 
from any described American woodpecker. The tail app? p 
be wholly white, except the middle pair of feathers, and gee 
also considerable white on the wings and about the head, "e of 
of the plumage being black. As we had too favorable à gai 
it to be mistaken as to its general characters, I mention | y 
for the purpose of calling the attention of other visitors to ! ! wake 
may hereafter have the opportunity of visiting the. mT 
north-west of Colorado City. 
It is not of course supposable that in our hasty 
t mainly 
er 
reconnoissance i 
