190 THE CONDOR Vol. XX 



was noted in Holland's Cove, swimming around our launch, and ashore at the same place 

 a flock of Arkansas Kingbirds (Tyrannus verticalis), of half a dozen individuals, lit on 

 a telephone wire near me and one was secured for the record. One or two others were 

 noted as well in that vicinity. — Joseph Mailliard, San Francisco, California, May 6, 1918. 



Extension of Known Distribution in Some Northern California Birds.— In company 

 with Mr. W. C. Jacobsen, State Superintendent of Rodent Control under the Horticult- 

 ural Commission of California, the undersigned was privileged to cover several of the 

 northern counties of the state in rapid reconnaissance during the latter part of May, 1918. 

 With previously known facts of bird distribution in the region traversed pretty well in 

 mind it was possible to recognize any occurrence of species beyond their previously re- 

 corded limits. The more important cases of this sort were as follows: 



Sayornis nigricans. Black Phoebe. On May 13 a pair was seen under a bridge 

 across the Trinity River near Lowden; another pair was seen May 14 near and under a 

 smaller wooden bridge at Hayfork; and a third pair the same day near a bridge over the 

 East Fork of the Trinity River, at Minersville. In the second instance one of the birds 

 was carrying nesting material. All three localities are in Trinity County; all possess a 

 number of species of plants and animals usually found in the Upper Sonoran Zone, but in 

 each place the bulk of the fauna and flora appeared to be Transition. 



Aphelocoma califomica im.manis. Long-tailed Jay. Seen almost continuously on 

 May 18 through the Upper Sonoran Zone in Modoc County, from Cornell on the east side 

 of Tule Lake, to a point some seven miles southeast of Straw, and again along the es- 

 carpment between Canby and Alturas. In Lassen County the same day this jay was en- 

 countered near Madeline, near the shores of Horse Lake, and in the valley of Susan Creek 

 five miles northeast of Susanville. In all these localities the Long-tailed Jay was closely 

 associated with the juniper belt. 



Cyanocephalus cyanocephalus. Pinyon Jay. A large straggling flock seen among 

 the junipers near Straw, Modoc County, May 18. 



Ghondestes grammacus strigatus. Western Lark Sparrow. Noted at Weaverville 

 and Hayfork, Trinity County; near Gazelle, in Shasta Valley, Siskiyou County; and sev- 

 en miles southwest of Macdoel, in Butte Valley, Siskiyou County; as also at many points 

 within the more commonly known range of the species. This bird is one of the frontier 

 species of the Upper Sonoran Zone, in the direction of Transition. 



Amphispiza belli belli. Bell Sparrow. Numbers noted in full song May 13 in the 

 plant association characterized by the dominance of the chemissal (Adenostoma fascicn- 

 latum) on the south and southwest facing slopes towards the head of Sawpit Gulch, 3000 

 to 3500 feet altitude, on Shasta County side of divide between Redding and Weaverville 

 (see Weaverville quadrangle, U. S. G. S.). The occurrence seemed to be perfectly nor- 

 mal and indicates the existence of this Upper Sonoran sparrow doubtless as a permanent- 

 ly resident species around the extreme head of the Sacramento Valley. The northern- 

 most previous record-station for the Bell Sparrow is Rumsey, Yolo County (see Pacific 

 Coast Avif. no. 11, 1915, p. 121). 



Mimus polyglottos leucopterus. Western Mockingbird. Three individuals ob- 

 served along the state highway in the suburbs of Corning, Tehama County, on May 20. 

 This is exactly as might have been expected, since Corning is well within the Lower So- 

 noran life-zone, though near the northern limits of it in California. The extension of 

 orchards of olive and citrus trees in that neighborhood is likely to favor the further 

 spread of the Mockingbird. (See Auk, xxxvin, 1911, pp. 293-300.)— J. Grinnell, Museum 

 of Vertebrate Zoology, Berkeley, California, July 1, 1918. 



Long Waits for Sets of Winter Wrens.— On April 18, 1908, a nest of Western Win- 

 ter Wren (Nannus hiemalis pacificus) was found in a small huckleberry bush, ready for 

 the inner lining of feathers. On May 24 it contained six fresh eggs. On May 7, 1916, by 

 watching the bird carrying nesting material, another nest was found among the roots of 

 a fallen tree. When next examined, May 21, it was ready for the inner lining, on May 28 

 it was in the same condition, and on June 3 it contained one egg and not a bit of lining. 

 On June 11 it was thickly lined with small feathers, and contained six eggs.— John M, 

 Davis, Eureka, California, February J t , 1918, 



