86 
THE CONDOR 
Vol. XII 
ing, yet, as a condition which prevails on the Nevadan side of Tahoe, birds of 
much lower levels were not uncommon. Above Spooner a small colony of Red- 
wings (. Agelaius phoeniceus neutralis ) was noted nesting in a swampy meadow; 
and here, well up the canyon, at an elevation of 7500 feet, where patches of snow 
still lay on the road, was the Black-headed Grosbeak (. Zamelodia melanocephala 
capitalist tossing exhilarating melody from the tree-tops along the brook. 
For five miles or more we followed the narrow canyon until, after a sharp turn, 
we reacht the top of a snow-covered ridge, than from which perhaps there is no 
rarer view in all the region, for directly below, surrounded by virgin forests, is 
Marlette Lake, and rising farther back, that lofty snow-peak, Mount Rose. About 
the lake the altitude, 8000 feet, was evidently a little too high for Agelaius and 
Zamelodia, and all the species noted were typically high Sierran and were as 
follows: Sierra Grouse ( Dendragapus obscutus sierrae ), Red-shafted Flicker ( Col- 
aptes cafer collaris) , Olive-side Flycatcher (Nuttalloniis borealis) , Western Wood 
Pewee ( Myiochanes ? ichardsoni) , Blue-fronted Jay ( Cyanocitta stelleri frontalis ) , 
Clarke Nutcracker, (. Nucifraga Columbiana) , White-crowned Sparrow {Zono tri- 
chi a leucoph?ys) , Sierra Junco ( Junco hyemalis thurberi) , Western Warbling 
Vireo ( Vireosylva gilva swainsoni), Ruby-crowned Kinglet ( Regains calendula ), 
Sierra Hermit Thrush ( Hylocichla guttata sequoiensis). 
After taking some views of Marlette we descended with the road to the lake 
shore, along its edge for some distance, and then, ascending the opposite mountain- 
side, we found ourselves on the eastern summit of the Sierras. Far below 7 lay the foot- 
hills and valley lands, and farther eastward the numberless barren mountain chains. 
Such deep snow covered the road, however, that we lost all trace of it and had to 
cut across the country as best we could. We met the road again at Hobart Creek 
Reservoir, a muddy lake in the open country, after a down-grade tramp which gave 
more of experience than pleasure. At the villa near the Hobart Pumping Station 
we spent the night and early next morning started down the long winding road 
which leads straight to Washoe Lake. Desiring to secure a good photograph of 
the lake w 7 e focust from numerous turns of the road but Washoe does not lend itself 
well to the camera, for we either had too much or too little lake or mountain, and 
once, -when the view 7 was fair, a great dead tree persisted in occupying half the 
plate. From a pictorial point too, each curve of the road below appeared better 
than the one w 7 e w 7 ere on, and in this way, altho we failed to get a picture of 
Washoe w r e soon reacht the level valley lands, w'here we made a short cut thru 
grainfields and orchards towards the lake. By a small brook -we came upon a colo- 
ny of American Magpies ( Pica hudsonia) , and, altho knowfing this bird to be a 
very early breeder, I inspected some half dozen nests in willow trees, but in 
each case the young birds had left. Crossing some wide pasture lands w 7 here 
countless cattle were grazing we came to the shores of Washoe. 
This lake w 7 itli its murky water and surrounded by desert ranges, tide tracts or 
swampy pasture lands, is a striking contrast to Tahoe w 7 ith its deep, clear water, and 
its great forests that run up lofty mountains and end in the snow. But I am not at 
all sure that Tahoe is richer in marsh and water birds. The A1 Tahoe marsh 
(formerly know'll as Rowdands) is the only swamp of consequence at Lake Tahoe, 
wdiere most of the shore line is either sandy or rocky, and it is smaller in extent 
than the great tule fields at the northern end of Washoe Lake. 
As we crossed the pasture lands, we found the Killdeer ( Oxyech'us vociferus) 
exceedingly common, in fact I know of no place w’here I have found them equally 
so, and our first nest (found by Heinemann) was of this bird w 7 ith four well incu- 
bated eggs. The latter w’ere placed on a bed of even-sized pebbles, in a slight 
