Brew EE on the Golden-Crovjnecl Kinglet. 



97 



hood ; that from their size and markings they cannot well belong 

 to any other species ; and because, while the egg so closely resem- 

 bles those of E. cristatus (to which bird H. safrapa is also very closely 

 allied) as to be hardly distinguishable from them, it is also essen- 

 tially different from the egg of li. calendula* which more nearly 

 resembles the eggs of E. ignicajnllus. - 



The following account of the nest and eggs I copy, by permission, 

 from Ml-. Merrill's letter: "In 1876 a friend presented me with 

 the nest which I shall describe, but the bird was not obtained, and 

 consequently its identification is a matter of conjecture. The nest 

 consisted of a large ball of soft moss, the whole forming a mass 

 about inches in djsimeter. The opening was at the top, and was 

 about 1| inches across and 2 inches deep. It was lined with hair 

 and feathers, principally the latter. The nest was in one of those 

 bunches of thick-growth so common on many of our fir-trees, and 

 contained ten eggs of the following dimensions : — 



No. 



Length. 



Width. 



No. 



Length. 



Width. 



1 



.52 



.41 



6 



.47 



.39 



2 



.50 



.40 



7 



.52 



.41 



3 



.50 



.41 



8 



.51 



.41 



4 



.50 



.41 



9 



.50 



.41 



5 



.47 



.39 



10 



.50 



.41 



Common. Breeds about June 5". " Too£ young" fully fledged the l oth of 

 July. The nests are generally low, not more than ten feet from the 

 ground. 



47. Sphyrapicus thyroideus. Brown-iieaded Woodpecker. — 

 Not rare. Several pairs bred about the Lakes. The 23d of June 1 found 

 a nest containing four young about two or three days old. The nest was 

 in a " quaking asp," about ton feet from the ground. The entrance to the 

 nest was very small, and the cavity inside not large. July 4, I took three. 

 In nestlings nearly fully fledged the sexual difference was as plainly marked 

 as in the adults. There were two males and two females in this nest. 

 On July 11 I found a second nest in a j)ine-tree about twelve feet from 

 the ground. This contained four young 'females fully fledged. These 

 birds do not seem shy, but are restless. 



48. Colaptes mexicanus. Ked-shafted Flickek. — Common. 

 Breeds about June 1. Took' young fully fledged on July 2 and July 4, 

 Seven in each nest. These nests, like those of most Woodpeckers I found 

 in this region, were not more than ten feet from the ground. The birds 

 are all typical, and show the distinguishing marks of sex in the first 

 plumage^' 



4a,^ubo virginianus. Great-horn-ed Owl. — Not common. Spe- 

 cimens arc much rjrayer than those taken in the East. 



