9/6 The American Naturalist. [November, 
geners of tropical America. Its note is not so loud and varied 
as that of the Mexican " clarine " {M. obscurus), but is sweet and 
subdued. The favorite position of the bird is on the summit of 
a dead tree, whence it sallies, flycatcher-fashion, after its insect 
food. The Turdus naevius appeared in small flocks, with the 
manners and movements of our robin ; and the mountain mocker, 
as I supposed it to be {Oreoscoptes montanus), was common in the 
thickets. The woodpeckers were represented by the Melanerpes 
torqiiatus Wilson, whose peculiar irregular flapping flight is fa- 
miliar to all persons who have seen the pine woods of the Rocky 
Mountains. 
The Mammalia to be found about the lake are those common 
to the region. The antelope, coyote {Canis latrans), badger, and 
skunk were easily found by sight or smell. By far the most 
abundant order is that of the Glires (rodents). I picked up a 
dead Thotnomys bulbivorus near to Duncan's house. In the sage 
desert west of the house the chipmunk {Tamias asiaticus quadn- 
vittatus Say), a small Spermophilus, and four species of rabbits 
abounded. The Tamias has the habit of climbing up the slender 
stalks of grasses and other plants for the purpose of feeding on the 
seeds. In such positions, when their attitudes remind one of a 
bird rather than of a mammal, they are easily secured. The 
rabbits inhabit the sage-brush in great numbers. The species are 
the Lepus campestris A. and B., L. callotis Wagl., L. silvaticus 
Bachm., and the L. trowbridgii Baird. The first-named is the 
largest, and is the least abundant. It is easily recognized by its 
light colors and its relative long tail. The jackass rabbit {L. 
callotis) is the most abundant, and is the most important as an 
article of food. The cotton-tail, L. sUvaticus, has the same char- 
acters as elsewhere, and differs from the two large species in its 
habit of running into holes. A most curious species is the litttle 
Z. trowbridgii, which I first detected in this regioi^ its previously 
known habitat having been the coast of California. Its color is 
a uniform bright rufous or rusty, and it appears, when running, to 
have no tail at all. Its movements are most erratic, dodging 
suddenly from one direction to another, so that it is very difficult 
