July, 1921 FROM FIELD AND STUDY 137 
people that gathered about the stand, but went on about her business of gathering food. 
She moved from flower to flower on the various snelves but gave special attention to 
the fiery-red stalks of the snow plant. It was roted that she was especially fond of the 
bright red flowers, such as Silene californica, Zauschneria, Castilleia, and Pentstemon 
menziesii —C. W. MicHaEL, Yosemite, California, June 2, 1921. 
Dipper Nesting in Santa Barbara County, California—Jack Hawley of San Diego 
told me recently of a Dipper (Cinclus mexicanus wunicolor) apparently nesting on a 
stream in Carpinteria, Santa Barbara County. I visited the spot on April 21 and saw 
the female enter the nest, which I found contained young about three days old. The 
nest is a little above where the stream emerges from the lowest ridge of the Santa Ynez 
range on the coast side, at an elevation of less than 500 feet. There is another pair 
farther up the same stream and another on the next stream, at this season, all presum- 
ably nesting.—RaALPH HoFFMANN, Carpinteria, California, April 23, 1921. 
The California Brown Pelican as a Navigator.—Along the coast north of San 
Diego the long line of bluff is of even contour, broken only by the typical sloughs which 
eccur every two or three miles, but otherwise rises abruptly from the shore and to a 
height of from twenty-five to over a hundred feet. The prevailing west wind, striking 
this bluff, is deflected upward, and along this lane of ascending air the California Brown 
Pelican (Pelecanus californicus), in his southward migration, sails swiftly with out- 
stretched wings and head folded back on his body. 
The pelicans fly in line formation in small flocks of from five to twenty, and 
when wind conditions are favorable will often pass and disappear from sight without 
once flapping their wings. It is an interesting sight to hide near the crest of a bluff 
and watch them pass, and to note with what poise and little apparent effort they main- 
tain their rapid flight, the only appreciable movement of the body being an occasional 
slight adjustment in response, no doubt, to the minor eddies and air currents. Occa- 
sionally a bird, feeling a desire for nourishment perhaps, which he may be carrying in 
his pouch for such an occasion, will raise his beak abruptly, his whole body will quiver 
in a momentary collapse, and then with a few quick wing-beats the bird regains his lost 
momentum and maintains his place in the line. 
The rate of speed seems to depend directly on the velocity of the wind, and prob- 
ably to some extent on the angle at which it strikes the bluff. The axis of the body is 
heid at an angle with the shore line, with a slight deflection to windward. The phe- 
nomenon of the birds’ flight is, of course, a process of voiplaning down an ascending 
stream of air and maintaining a definite position relative to the ground. One is sur- 
prised, however, at the remarkable efficiency which they exhibit, evidenced by their 
high velocity in a very moderate wind, and the slight angle at which the body is held 
in relation to their line of flight. The position usually taken is, roughly, about 75 feet 
west of the crest of the bluff and about 20 or 30 feet above it. This position may vary 
from day to day, but at any given time one flock wiil follow another in very nearly the 
same line, the birds seeming to instinctively adjust their positions to obtain the maxi- 
mum lift from the ascending air. 
The Pelican is an adept navigator, the observations made above recalling to mind 
the common sight of the birds racing at express speed along the crest of the long rolling 
swells before they break on the shore, the case being practically parallel, since the 
wind striking the outer side of the swell is deflected upward, the angle of deflection 
increasing as the swell nears the shore. In this case, however, owing to the lesser 
height, it is necessary for the bird to barely clear the crest of the swell to obtain the 
desired reaction. 
When one observes their apparently effortless and swift flight southward along 
this stretch of coast one is apt to speculate on how much of his journey the California 
Brown Pelican is able to make gliding “on the breast of the wind’, and judging from 
observations in this locality I am confident that on an economy run down the coast, on 
a “miles per gallon” basis, our friend the pelican would be hard to beat. 
We are accustomed to observing various birds taking advantage of ascending 
air currents in their casual flights, but a record of other birds taking such advantage 
