Mar. 1903 I 
THE CONDOR 
35 
nection with certain ceremonies. The western redtail {Bnteo borealis calurus) was 
seen daily, and on one occasion a few characteristic feathers lying beside a half-eaten 
jackrabbit showed almost conclusively the author of the good work The great 
horned owl {Bubo) was not seen, but its wierd notes were occasionally heard at 
dusk and early morn. Tracks were seen of the roadrunner {Geococcyx californi- 
arms) which is well known to the Mokis under the name of Hosh-bo-a. 
A solitary hairy woodpecker {Dryobates villosus subspec?) which busied itself 
among some pinyons and junipers along the canyon wall was the only represent- 
ation of the family observed. A fine specimen of poorwill {PJialce?ioptilus nuttalli) 
was secured on the evening of July 19 as it was flying . over the canyon bottom 
in front of the house. It would have been impossible to have seen it but for the 
light color of the ground over which it passed, like a fleeting shadow, in pursuit 
of insects. The Mokis who saw the specimen were much interested in it and de- 
signated it by the name of Ho-witz-ko. Nighthawks were common and were heard 
booming every evening. A colony of white-throated swifts {Aeronautes melano- 
leucus) bred in the holes in the canyon walls back of the house, and were almost 
always in sight, .skimming rapidly along the edge of the mesa or darting out high 
over the valley into which, however, they rarely descended. A female black- 
chinned hummer {Trochilus alexandri) was secured on July 31, from its perch on a 
dead-topped juniper, and a fine male rufous hummer {Selasp/iorus rufus) was killed 
July 30 among some flowers along the edge of a trail. Several other hummers 
were seen at different times, but at too great a distance for positive identification. 
Among the flycatchers the Arkansas kingbirds, ash-throated flycatchers and Say 
phoebes were seen, the latter, which lived among the giant boulders of the canyon 
walls, being the most abundant. Pinyon and Woodhouse jays were seen every day 
on the mesa and a few were seen flying across the valley. Although the season 
was not far enough advanced for the pine nuts to contain kernels, nevertheless 
cones were found which had been mutilated by these jays. 
The raven {Corvus corax sinuatus) is one of the commonest birds in the valley, 
and on account of its great fondness for corn and melons is one of the most trouble- 
some to the Mokis. Hundreds congregate along the edges of the cliffs and other 
prominent places in the vicinity of the gardens, and should the old women who 
are placed on guard to watch the fields from early morn until nightfall relax their 
vigilance for a moment, the birds are sure to take advantage of the opportunity. 
The gray vireo ( Vireo vicinior) was tolerably common, though its presence might 
easily have been overlooked except for the characteristic .song which was often 
heard while the birds remained hidden amid the dense foliage of the pinyon and 
juniper. A thrasher, which the Mokis called Kot-to-zi, was not uncommon, but 
was extremely wary and difficult of approach. It was not satisfactorily identified 
until July 31 when a chance shot secured a specimen which proved to be the Ben- 
dire thrasher {Toxosionia bendirei). This capture would have been a surprise 
but for the taking of an immature bird at Holbrook a short time previously. This 
species, which is commonest throughout the area occupied by the giant cactus, evi- 
dently has extended its range to this remote corner of Arizona by a route along 
the Colorado and Little Colorado Rivers and their tributary valleys. 
The following list includes all the species observed. Though the number rep- 
resented is not large and the species are not especially interesting, the fact that 
the list covers a comparatively little known region, is considered a sufficient excuse 
for its publications 
