H 
THE CONDOR 
VOL. VII 
tramping was concerned, on July 5th at Tallae on the southern shore of Lake 
Tahoe. Including numerous side trips, such as those to South Calaveras Grove, 
to various lakes about Glen Alpine, and finally the ascent of Mt. Tallae, we 
tramped about two hundred miles, at no time meeting with hardships and at all 
times surrounded by a nature surpassingly beautiful in its combination and suc- 
cession of forest and meadow and mountain. 
Notes were made on the birds seen throughout the trip and the opportunities 
for such study proved to be far richer than had been expected. The alleged “scar- 
city of birds in the High Sierras” could not at no time be a subject of reasonable 
complaint. Probably birds were not so abundant as in the plains and foothills of 
the lower altitudes, but one was seldom indeed removed from the sight of flitting 
forms and almost never from the sound of bird voices. The loud “querk” of the 
plumed partridge, the joyous quavers of the ruby-crowned kinglet and the serious- 
ly dignified song of the white-crowned sparrow were constantly in one’s ears dur- 
ing the days spent in the higher altitudes and the last named songster at least 
often continued his efforts until well into the night, when sleep had overcome 
one’s powers to observe and note. 
In a previous number of The Condor Mr. Barlow contributed his very thor- 
ough observations on the birds of the Placerville-Lake Tahoe stage road, a region 
lying mostly along the course of the American River to the north of the territory 
covered by our party and joining the region of our observations at Lake Tahoe. 
So far as the mere occurrence of species is concerned lists of birds found along the 
route studied by Mr. Barlow and on the one taken by us would differ but little, 
the faunal conditions evidently being very similar. About all I can hope to add in 
the way of notes from this region therefore will concern those species which acci- 
dent or unusual opportunity allowed me to observe with special success. I should 
say farther that in writing these notes I have kept in mind Mr. Belding’s accounts 
of the same species in his very valuable “Land Birds of the Pacific District.” Mr. 
Belding has covered at different times a considerable part of the very ground which 
it was my privilege to tread, my most interesting days with the birds being on 
what is apparently familiar and favorite ground to him, viz., Bear Valley in Al- 
pine county. I should like to say parenthetically that Mr. Blood, who last year 
completed his fortieth and, as he said, last year in charge of the toll and ranch in 
this mountain meadow, always spoke with unusual enthusiasm of the days when 
Mr. Belding came to hunt and study in this favored spot. It caused one to regret 
the fact that to many of us a personal acquaintance with our esteemed honorary 
member has not been possible. In the following notes I shall venture a few ob- 
servations on nine species of land birds only, namely, the plumed partridge, Wright 
flycatcher, white-crowned sparrow, Lincoln sparrow, thick-billed sparrow, tree 
swallow, phainopepla, pileolated warbler, and mountain chickadee. 
The plumed partridge ( Oreortyx pictus plumiferus ) had already assumed nup- 
tial cares apparently when we first reached its breeding range on June 1, a short 
distance below Avery at an altitude of 3000 feet. From here on to the end of the 
trip it was no uncommon sight to see a pair of these birds walking sedately along 
the road or across a forest opening, the male leading with plumes erect and the fe- 
male walking close behind. As I afterward learned this was usually an indication 
of an incompleted set of eggs in the near vicinity. At Bear Valley elevation 7015 
feet, three occupied nests were found and two nests of the preceding year. A sixth 
occupied nest was found on Mt. Tallae. Eyesight alone was depended on to reveal 
a nest after having decided upon the approximate location from hearing the 
whistle of the male or seeing the pair walking about as mentioned. The nests 
