147 



The West American Scientist. 



148 



shape and rather large for the size of 

 th« parent. 



Four genera and at least eight spe- 

 cies of hummingbirds are linown to sc- 

 our in California, or nine if the so- 

 ©alled Violet-throated Hummingbird is 

 found to be a good species. Tke single 

 known specimen was probably a hybrid. 



The Rufous Hummingbird (Selas- 

 phorus rufus) is perhaps our most 

 beautiful hummingbird. It has a very 

 extended range, being found in sum- 

 Mier as far north as Cook's Inlet in 

 central Alaska and in winter as far 

 south] as the table lands of Mexico. It 

 ranges from the Pacific Ocean east to 

 Colorado and Montana. Its breeding 

 range is from central California north 

 to Alaska and east to the Rocky Moun- 

 tains. The breeding season commences 

 ' in April and extends to July. The 

 nests are often placed in shrubs over- 

 hanging small streams or footpaths. 

 The nests are usually well stuccoed. 



Rufous Hummingbirds are best 

 known in California as spring mi- 

 grants. In March and April they are 

 abundant in the valleys on their way 

 north. The southward migrants in 

 autumn pass principally through the 

 higher mountain ranges, as flowers are 

 most atoundant there at that seasen. 

 The male Rufous Hummingbirds are 

 very pugnacious but the females are 

 comparatively quiet and. well behaved. 



Rufous Hummingbirds are often con- 

 fused with Allen's Humming-birds '(S. 

 alleni), which occur with the former 

 species in many localities in the mi- 

 grations. The females of the two spe- 

 cies are so similar that it takes a close 

 examination by an expert to distin- 

 guish them. The males are similar in 

 a general way, but the back of Allen's 

 Hummingbird is green, while that of 

 the Rufous Hummingbird is cinnamon- 

 rufous, occasionally tinged with green. 



The range of Allen's Hummingbid is 

 not as wide as that of the Rufous. A 

 few individuals winter in the Santa 

 Barbara Islands and seem to be per- 

 manet residents there. The bu'k of the 

 species winter somewhere south of Cal- 

 ifornia, but where is not definitely 

 known, from lack of accurate observa- 

 tions. Its summer range is from west 

 central California northward probably 

 throughout the Cascade Mou»tain&. 



seemingly beinff most abundant not far 

 north of San Francisco, perhaps be- 

 cause more good observers have stud- 

 ied them there. 



Allen's Hummingbird is said to be 

 the most quarrelsome of the North 

 American species. Its nesting habits 

 are similar to those of the Rufous 

 Hummingbird. 



Joseph Grinnell found a nest con- 

 taining two eggs March 28th, on San- 

 ta Catalina Island. 



Anna's Hummingbird (Calypte anna) 

 is the commonest and best knowu 

 species in California. It ranges over 

 most of California and northern Low- 

 er California, sometimes migiating in- 

 to Arizona in autumn. In the coast 

 valleys of central and southern Cali- 

 fornia, Anna's Hummingbirds are res- 

 ident as a species though most abund- 

 ant in winter. Their breeding season 

 is long, January to July, one set hav- 

 ing even been found in December near 

 Los Angeles. Nests are placed in all 

 sorts of places, at heights varying 

 from two to forty feet from the ground. 

 The greater number of those seen were 

 placed in ornamental trees. The nests 

 are composed of various sorts of ma- 

 teiials and are usually stuccoed on the 

 outside with bits of lichens and moss. 

 They are rather large and thick wall-, 

 ed. The females are close sitters 

 though surpassed in this lespect by 

 Costa's Hummingbirds. 



It is probable that those individuals 

 that breed, or are reared in the coast 

 valleys in winter and early sping, mi- 

 grate to the pine regions of the mount- 

 ains, being replaced by immigrants 

 from the southern parts of the winter 

 range of the species. 



The remaining species of Humming- 

 birds found in California are: — Black- 

 chinned Hummingbird (Trochilus alex- 

 andri), a rather common resident of 

 the southwestern United States. 



Costa's Hummingbird (Calypte cos- 

 tae), ranging over much the same re- 

 gion as the Black-chinned but not as 

 common and found in more arid local- 

 ities. 



Floresi's Hummingbird (Selasp'^or js 

 floresi), a very rare species, two males 

 have been taken near San Francisco, 

 California. 



Broad-tailed Hummingbird (Selas- 



