May, 1913
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FROM FIELD AND STUDY 9 Early Nesting of the Band-tailed .Pigeon.--As supplementing the nesting notes on the Band-tailed Pigeon in T}IE CONfOR for January, 1913, the following notes from one of my old note-books may be of interest. March 6, 1877, Laguna Mountains, twenty miles north of Campo, San Diego County, California: Columba fasciata; one egg; parent flew from nest, and from tree to tree, flut- tering its wings while perched, evidently to lead me away. Bird shot and preserved; on dissection, proved to be a male. Egg near hatching. Nest very slight and flat, compose--'-d of oak twigs, placed on a small branch against a larger branch of a deciduous oak, then bare of leaves, about eight feet from the ground, in a forest of mixed oak and pine, at about 5,500 feet altitude. No other pigeon seen. This is the nest alluded to on page 124 of Bendire's Life Histories of North .4roerican Birds. The context implies that this nest was found in Arizona but this was a mistake. I have seen no Band-tailed Pigeons in San Diego County now for two or three years.- FRANK STEP?IENS. Some Rare Transients of the .Corral de Quart Ranch.--The Corral de Quati Ranch is in Santa Barbara County, California. It lies in the southern foothills of the San Rafael Mountains, and is a mile or so north of Los Olivos. These observations were taken wlth an opera glass, along the Alamo Pintado Creek. On March 1, 1907, I discovered in a sycamore on the creek's edge a company of nine Cedar Waxwings (Bombycilla cedrorum) sitting in a row on a bare twig. They were fluffed up like birds in a picture of winter--soft grey birds, soft grey twig, soft grey sky. At times they flew into the mistletoe, eating the berries, and clinging gracefully like tit- mice. Their note was a soft "see-see." On April 27, 1909, a flock of Pine Siskins (Spinus pinus) had been with us in the same white oak tree for a week, busily investigating moss and bark and leaves. Their notes were a wheezy "scree-ee-ee", and much low twittering somewhat after the manner of the Arkansas Goldfinch, which they resembled. About May 11, 1912, I found a small number of Western Blue Grosbeaks (Guiraca caerulea lazula), male and female, about the pigpens. These birds remained several days and appeared to be picking up the grain where the pigs were fed. The males' coats were particularly striking, the chestnut bars of the wings being in. sharp relief against the prev- alent blue of the body. The males were more timid than the females, this cautioushess be- ing made necessary, no doubt, because of their more noticeable CO1Oring.--V?Re?N?A FAUN?'- LEROY Fox. American Egret in San Diego County.--Noticing some reports regarding the Egret (Herodias egrett a) still surviving I might say that. I saw on October 13, 1912, at least twelve at one time, and on October 15 there were nine. Again on November 28, 1912, I saw five, and on Decembe{- 25 I saw over twenty all in a bunch. All these birds were on the south end of San Diego Bay near the salt works. On previous years I never saw more than four at any one time on the Bay in that district; and but a single individual was to be seen once in a while at the north end of the Bay or on Mission Bay.--HENRY GREY. Anna Mummer in Ferndale, Humboldt County, California.--From October 15 to about the middle of November I was interested to note the almost daily appearance in nay garden of an adult male Anna Hummingbird (Calypte anna). He came many times to'a fuchsia within four feet of my post of observation, and hovered fearlessly ove? the bright flowers. Late in October, a neighbor living in the next block asked me to name a green and gray hummingbird larger than the "red one" (Rufous), with throat of magenta, .which wa? then visiting her garden frequently. Her description would seem to confirm my observa- tion. I have known Calypte anna intimately for twenty-five years, in southern California, so there was no possibility of mistaken identification.--C?A?LO?rE M. W?L?Ea. Western Goshawk in California.--I see very little or no mention-of the Goshawk (.4stur atricapillus striatulus) in published lists appearing in T?E CONmR from time to time. I might say that I got a fine specimen, a female in full plumage, on January 6, 1907, at North-PaiD Alto, San Mateo County. In October, 1900, at West Rialto, in San Bernardino County, I saw another hut could not get a shot at it. It was trying to catch doves feeding on the weed seeds, but failed, on the two trips it made to the place while I was there. It was very wild, and I could get within a hundred yards of it--HENRY GREY.
