May, 1917 BIRDS OF THE HUMID COAST 101 



VIII. A VOICE FROM THE HEIGHTS 



Above the chorus of the Humid Coast belt three soloists stood apart, not 

 from any brilliancy of execution or charm of vocal accomplishment, but from 

 their deep human appeal, their rare moving- quality. The clarion pu-pu-peo, or 

 the keener pu-pee-peo, of the Olive-sided Flycatcher from the hills aroused rich 

 mountain memories, as did also the fresh uplifted song of the Xuttall Sparrow, 

 whether heard from a fern field, a tree top overlooking the fishing village and 

 the quiet inland waters of the blue Bay, or from a cliff overlooking the wide 

 sandy beach and the long white lines of surf coming in from the ocean. 



But there was one voice that was new to me, whose appeal was reinforced 

 by no rare memories, though given glamour by Alaskan song and story — the 

 voice of the Varied Thrush. Its single note with its mysterious vibrant trill 

 had been heard from the mountain tops in the chorus of morning and evening; 

 and on one red letter day, from the wood road one of the rare birds had actual- 

 ly been seen near enough to distinguish its golden brown, dark-collared breast. 



But not until one Sunday morning when I was sitting quietly in the fern 

 field, did I really hear the wonderful song. Then through the clear air, each 

 single, long-swelling note came down from the ridge above like the peal of a 

 golden bell. It was indeed a Voice from the Heights ! The best songs from the 

 lower levels and even those of the Olive-sided and the Xuttall Sparrow but 

 lead up to it, for the song of the Sparrow is full of plaintive yearning, and the 

 call of the Flycatcher, pure and clarion toned though it be, has a note of striv- 

 ing in its exaltation: but the voice of the Varied Thrush seems the voice of one 

 who has attained. And as it comes from the Heights with their far view over 

 the ocean, it seems to voice the serene philosophic spirit by which life, death, 

 and the veiled hereafter seem but links in the chain of the ordered Universe, upon 

 which, with bared head, one may gaze, content to bear his part. 



^Yas1lington, D. C. 



FROM FIELD AND STUDY 



Peculiar Nesting Habits of the Avocet. — While collecting on the south shore of 

 Big Quill Lake, Saskatchewan, on June 22, 1915, on a low, sandy island I found three 

 nests of the Avocet (Recurvirostra americana) . Nest number one contained four eggs 

 on the point of hatching. Number two, six eggs, three of which were fresh and three on 

 point of hatching! Number three, eight eggs, all fresh. During the time I was on this 

 island, nearly two hours, I counted ten birds. On June 8, at Buffalo Lake, on a small 

 low island, I found only one nest containing seven fresh eggs, though I counted there 

 eight birds. 



Mr. W. E. Lake, of Edam, Saskatchewan, a reliable observer, told me he had noted 

 Avocets breeding in his district for some years, and of having found nests containing 

 from three to eight eggs. — H. H. Mitchell, Regina, Saskatcheivan. 



The Surf Bird at San Francisco. — On November 5, 1916, a very exceptional oppor- 

 tunity was afforded the writer for observing a flock of Surf-birds (Aphriza virgata), on 

 the boulder-strewn beach below San Francisco's famous Cliff House. I had been looking 

 seaward through the powerful binoculars that may be rented on the piazza, when my at- 

 tention was attracted by nine of these birds on the ledges almost directly beneath. Upon 

 adjusting the glass to proper focus, the birds were revealed in startling proximity, ap- 

 pearing scarcely an arm's length distant and permitting of the most minute inspection. 



They were busily engaged in exploring the mossy buttresses, and apparently were 

 not at all alarmed by the numerous visitors on the terrace above, though acknowledging 

 their presence by pausing from time to time to look upward. They worked industriously 



