May, 1914 
BIRDS OF NORTHERN MONTANA 
135 
commences about the middle of June, the eggs hatch in about fourteen days, 
and the young are on the wing in the latter half of July. 
Empidonax hammondi. Hammond Flycatcher. Eare summer resident in 
the mountains. Seen on the West Fork of the Sun Eiver August 12, 1912. 
Empidonax wrighti. Wright Flycatcher. Common summer resident in 
the mountains below 6000 feet. Abundant along the foothills. 
Otocoris alpestris arcticola. Pallid Horned Lark. Winter visitor on the 
ju’airie benches. Occurs in large flocks with Snow Buntings and Alaska 
Longspurs. Last seen in spring on March 10, 1912. 
Otocoris alpestris leucolaema. Desert Horned Lark. Abundant summer 
resident on the prairie benches. A few winter with the above species. The 
returning flocks of this bird are usually the first sign of spring. Migration 
dates : March 10, 1912, March 3, 1913. Young are first seen on the wing in the 
latter half of June, and again in August, which leads me to believe that there 
are two broods, one commencing 
early in May, and the second in 
July. 
Pica pica hudsonia. Magpie. 
Abundant permanent resident on 
the prairies, nesting in cotton- 
wood groves and willow thickets. 
Occasionally found in the moun- 
tains in fall, but does not nest 
there. Nesting begins in April. 
In 1912 I found the first eggs 
April 7, and also took a set of 
fresh eggs May 26. Young are 
first seen out of the nest about 
June 1. In the winter, in this re- 
gion, magpies frequently make 
use of their last year’s nests as a 
shelter from the heavy winds. 
Cyanocitta stelleri annectens. 
Black-headed Jay. Permanent 
resident in the mountains. Not 
Fig. 44. Nest and eggs of Spotted Saxd- 
common. 
_ . , . . PIPER. 
Perisoreus canadensis capi- 
talis. Eoeky Mountain Jay. Permanent resident in the mountains. Some- 
what less abundant than in southern Montana. 
Corvus corax principalis. Northern Eaven. Permanent resident in the 
mountains. Eare in most places, but fairly frequent in the vicinity of Lubec, 
along the southern border of the Glacier National Park. 
Oorvus brachyrhynchos hesperis. Western Crow. Common summer resi- 
dent, nesting in cottonwood groves and willow thickets, in the prairies. Nest- 
ing commences about the middle of May, and young are on the wing in the 
latter half of June. Migration date : April 2, 1912. Occurs rarely in winter. 
Nucifraga Columbiana. Clarke Nutcracker. Abundant permanent resi- 
dent in the mountains. 
Dolichonyx oryzivorus. Bobolink. Summer resident in the wet meadows 
of the prairie region. Abundant locally. Said to be increasing in numbers. 
Migration date : May 25, 1912. 
