164 THE CONDOR Vol. XXIII 
October 12, 1885, and October 11 and 138, 1888, but subsequent observers have noted the 
arrival of the bird as early as October 4, in 1912 and 1913.—T. S. PaLMer, Washington, 
D. C., May 8, 1921. 
Extension of Breeding Range of Marsh Sparrow and Monterey Hermit Thrush*,.— 
While carrying on some field work for the California Academy of Sciences in Dei 
Norte County, California, during this past spring (1921), with Chase Littlejohn as 
assistant, I kept special lookout for marsh sparrows (Passerculus sandwichensis 
subsp.?), as there did not seem to be any good reason for this species limiting its 
northern range to Humboldt Bay. While it is true that there are but few attractive 
localities for it along this rockbound coast, at the same time a few small meadows do 
exist at the mouths of rivers and at the heads of lagoons. One such meadow is at the 
mouth of the Klamath River, just opposite the little settlement of Requa, Del Norte 
County, this being an alluvial flat about a mile long and half a mile wide. It is shut 
off from the ocean by a bar of low sand dunes, and seemed as if it might be a breeding 
ground for this sparrow, which it proved to be. 
A visit to this flat on May 7 resulted in our finding a small number of these birds 
there, and two males were secured. On May 16 another visit was made to this place 
and a search carried on for nests, of which none was found. Several birds were jseen 
and another male taken. They were found only at the ocean end of the flat, in land 
that is more or less of a meadow and has a small stream running through’ it that is 
backed up by the tides. Most of the drier parts of the flat are covered with scattered 
bushes of lupine, and it was perching upon these that the birds were most often seen. 
On May 29 another visit was made to this meadow and two or three of the birds 
were again seen. As we could not find a nest we endeavored to obtain a female, for ex- 
amination as to breeding status. A pair was finally located, but the female was lost 
in a thick growth of lupine and grass, most unfortunately. Not wishing to run the 
chance of exterminating this small colony no further attempt was made to obtain a 
bird. There can be no doubt, however, as to this species breeding there, to judge from 
the actions of those seen. A number of dairy cattle daily grazing in this) meadow not 
only kept the grass very short, where unprotected by lupine bushes, but also made the 
search for nests more difficult by continually getting in our way, or stirring up the 
birds as they moved about. There was so little grass for concealment in the open that 
it seems probable that the nests were either in the lupines, or else at the edge of the 
sand dunes where small drift wood would protect them. As much time as could he 
spared was devoted to searching for nests, but without result. 
Passing through Crescent City, Del Norte County, on a trip into the interior, some 
good-looking meadow was noted and, upon returning to that town, the morning of May 
27 was devoted to settling the question as to the presence there of the marsh 
sparrow. In a small damp spot just south of the town a pair of this species was located 
and again a male was taken. The female escaped and disappeared for the moment. A 
long tramp failed to discover any more, nor did a visit by Littlejohn to another meadow 
meet with success. This may have been due to the constantly increasing gale that 
sprang up early that morning and finally drove us indoors. for the rest of the day. We 
arranged to get out at five o’clock next morning for a further search, but a heavy rain 
set in, with the promise of such bad weather that it was decided to return to Requa, 
our principal objective, and finish up the work there. 
The original idea in looking for marsh sparrows on this field trip was the possi- 
bility of finding the Bryant Marsh Sparrow (Passerculus sandwichensis bryanti) breed- 
ing farther north along the coast than Humboldt Bay. The first bird taken at Requa 
appeared to prove such a possibility to be a fact, but upon careful study of the other 
four specimens secured I have concluded to place them all in the category of Dwarf 
Marsh Sparrow (Passerculus sandwichensis brooksi Bishop), not so much on account of 
measurements as compared with the Bryant Marsh Sparrow, but rather on account of 
the coloration. As remarked above, the first one obtained is indistinguishable from 
many specimens of bryanti taken in the breeding season in the recognized habitat of 
the latter form, while the other four of our Del Norte County specimens have the backs 
*Contribution No. 123 from California Academy of Sciences. 
