The bird to which I refer is called the lark bunting in plain English, or, in scientific terms, Calamospiza melanocorys. The male is a trig and handsome fellow, giving you the impression of a well-dressed gentleman in his Sunday suit of black, "with more or less of a slaty cast," as Ridgway puts it, the middle and greater wing-coverts bearing a conspicuous white patch which is both a diagnostic marking and a real ornament. In flight this patch imparts to the wing a filmy, almost semi-transparent, aspect. The bunting is about the size of the eastern bobolink, and bears some resemblance to that bird; but bobolink he is not, although sometimes mistaken for one, and even called by that name in Colorado. The fact is, those wise men, the systematists, have decided that the bobolink belongs to the family Icteridæ, which includes, among others, the blackbirds and orioles, while the lark bunting occupies a genus all by himself in the family Fringillidæ—that is, the family of finches, sparrows, grosbeaks, and towhees. Therefore, the two birds can scarcely be called second cousins. The bunting has no white or buff on his upper parts.

Sitting on a sunny slope one June evening, I surrendered myself to the spell of the bunting, and endeavored to make an analysis of his minstrelsy. First, it must be said that he is as fond as the bobolink of rehearsing his arias on the wing, and that is, perhaps, the chief reason for his having been mistaken for that bird by careless observers. Probably the major part of his solos are recited in flight, although he can sit quietly on a weed-stalk or a fence-post and sing as sweetly, if not as ecstatically, as if he were curveting in the air. During this aerial performance he hovers gracefully, bending his wings downward, after the bobolink's manner, as if he were caressing the earth beneath him. However, a striking difference between his intermittent song-flights and those of the bobolink is to be noted. The latter usually rises in the air, soars around in a curve, and returns to the perch from which he started, or to one near by, describing something of an ellipse. The lark bunting generally rises obliquely to a certain point, then descends at about the same angle to another perch opposite the starting-point, describing what might be called the upper sides of an isosceles triangle, the base being a line near the ground, connecting the perch from which he rose and the one on which he alighted. I do not mean to say that our bunting never circles, but simply that such is not his ordinary habit, while sweeping in a circle or ellipse is the favorite pastime of the eastern bobolink. The ascent of neither bird is very high. They are far from deserving the name of skylarks.

We must give a detailed account of the bunting's song. Whatever others may think of him, I have come under the spell of his lyrical genius. True, his voice has not the loud, metallic ring, nor his chanson the medley-like, happy-go-lucky execution, that marks the musical performances of the bobolink; but his song is more mellow, rhythmic, theme-like; for he has a distinct tune to sing, and sing it he will. In fine, his song is of a different order from that of the bobolink, and, therefore, the comparison need be carried no further.

As one of these minstrels sat on a flowering weed and gave himself up to a lyrical transport, I made careful notes, and now give the substance of my elaborate entries. The song, which is intermittent, opens with three prolonged notes running high in the scale, and is succeeded by a quaint, rattling trill of an indescribable character, not without musical effect, which is followed by three double-toned long notes quite different from the opening phrases; then the whole performance is closed by an exceedingly high and fine run like an insect's hum—so fine, indeed, that the auditor must be near at hand to notice it at all. Sometimes the latter half of the score, including the second triad of long notes, is repeated before the soloist stops to take breath. It will be seen that the regular song consists of four distinct phrases, two triads and two trills. About one-third of the songs are opened in a little lower key than the rest, the remainder being correspondingly mellowed. The opening syllables, and, indeed, some other parts of the melody as well, are very like certain strains of the song-sparrow, both in execution and in quality of tone; and thus even the experienced ornithologist may sometimes be led astray. When the bunting sails into the air, he rehearses the song just described, only he is very likely to prolong it by repeating the various parts, though I think he seldom, if ever, throws them together in a hodge-podge. He seems to follow a system in his recitals, varied as many of them are. As to his voice, it is of superb timbre.

Another characteristic noted was that the buntings do not throw back their heads while singing, after the manner of the sparrows, but stretch their necks forward, and at no time do they open their mouths widely. As a rule, or at least very often, when flying, they do not begin their songs until they have almost reached the apex of their triangle; then the song begins, and it continues over the angle and down the incline until another perch is settled upon. What Lowell says of "bobolinkum" is just as true of bunting—"He runs down, a brook o' laughter, thru the air." As the sun went down behind the snow-clad mountains, a half dozen or more of the buntings rolled up the full tide of song, and I left them to their vespers and trudged back to the village, satisfied with the acquirements of this red-letter day in my ornithological journey.

However, one afternoon's study of such charming birds was not enough to satisfy my curiosity, for no females had been seen and no nests discovered. About ten days later, more attention was given them. In a meadow not far from the hamlet of Arvada, between Denver and the mountains, I found a colony of buntings one morning, swinging in the air and furnishing their full quota of the matutinal concert, in which many other birds had a leading part, among them being western meadow-larks, western robins, Bullock's orioles, American and Arkansas goldfinches, mountain song-sparrows, lazuli finches, spurred towhees, black-headed grosbeaks, summer warblers, western Maryland yellow-throats, and Townsend's solitaires. It has seldom been my fortune to listen to a finer pot-pourri of avian music.

At first only male buntings were seen. Surely, I thought, there must be females in the neighborhood, for when male birds are singing so lustily about a place, their spouses are usually sitting quietly on nests somewhere in bush or tree or grass. I hunted long for a nest, trudging about over the meadow, examining many a grass-tuft and weed-clump, hoping to flush a female and discover her secret; but my quest was vain. It is strange how difficult it is to find nests in Colorado, either on the plains or in the mountains. The birds seem to be adepts in the fine arts of concealment and secret-keeping. Presently several females were seen flying off over the fields and returning, obviously to feed their young. There was now some colorable prospect of finding a nest. A mother bird appeared with a worm in her bill, and you may rely upon it I did not permit her to slip from my sight until I saw her drop to the ground, hop about stealthily for a few moments, then disappear, and presently fly up minus the worm. Scarcely daring to breathe, I followed a direct course to the weed-clump from which she had risen. And there was a nest, sure enough—my first lark bunting's—set in a shallow pit of the ground, prettily concealed and partly roofed over by the flat and spreading weed-stalk. Four half-fledged youngsters lay panting in the little cradle, the day being very warm. I lifted one of them from the nest, and held it in my hand for a minute or two, and even touched it with my lips, my first view of lark-bunting babies being something of an event—I had almost said an epoch—in my experience. Replacing the youngster in its crib, I stepped back a short distance and watched the mother bird returning with another mouthful of "goodies," and feeding her bantlings four. She was not very shy, and simply uttered a fine chirp when I went too close to her nestlings, while her gallant consort did not even chirp, but tried to divert my attention by repeatedly curveting in the air and singing his choicest measures. This was the only bunting's nest I found, although I made long and diligent search for others, as you may well believe when I state that a half day was spent in gathering the facts recorded in the last two paragraphs.

In the afternoon I watched a female in another field for a long time, but she was too wary to betray her secret. In this case the male, instead of beguiling me with song, flitted about and mingled his fine chirps with those of his anxious mate. On my way across the plains, some two weeks later, I discovered that the lark buntings do not dwell only in well-watered meadows, but also in the most arid localities. Still, I am inclined to think they do not build their nests far from refreshing streams. When the breeding season is over, they range far and wide over the plains in search of insects that are to their taste. From the car window many of them were observed all along the way to a distance of over sixty miles east of Denver. At that time the males, females, and young were moving from place to place, mostly in scattering flocks, the breeding season being past. A problem that puzzled me a little was where they obtain water for drinking and bathing purposes, but no doubt such blithe and active birds are able to "look out for number one."

The second member of our lyrical quartette is the elegant green-tailed towhee, known scientifically as Pipilo chlorurus. The pretty green-tails are quite wary about divulging their domestic secrets, and for a time I was almost in despair of finding even one of their nests. In vain I explored with exhausting toil many a steep mountain side, examining every bush and beating every copse within a radius of many rods.

My purpose was to flush the female from her nest, a plan that succeeds with many birds; but in this instance I was disappointed. It is possible that, when an intruder appears in their nesting haunts, the males, which are ever on the lookout, call their spouses from the nests, and then "snap their fingers," so to speak, at the puzzled searcher.

However, by watching the mother birds carrying worms in their bills I succeeded in finding two nests. The first was at Breckenridge, and, curiously enough, in a vacant lot at the border of the town, not on a steep slope, but on a level spot near the bank of Blue River. The mother bird had slyly crept to her nest while I watched, and remained firmly seated until I bent directly over her, when she fluttered away, trailing a few feet to draw my attention to herself. It was a cosey nest site—in a low, thick bush, beneath a rusty but well-preserved piece of sheet-iron which made a slant roof over the cradle. It contained three callow bantlings, which innocently opened their carmine-lined mouths when I stirred the leaves above them. It seemed to be an odd location for the nest of a bird that had always appeared so wild and shy. The altitude of the place is nine thousand five hundred and twenty feet.

My second green-tail's nest was in South Platte Cañon, near a station called Chaseville, its elevation being about eight thousand five hundred feet. I was walking along the dusty wagon road winding about the base of the mountain, when a little bird with a worm in her bill flitted up the steep bank a short distance and disappeared among the bushes. The tidbit in her bill gave me a clew to the situation; so I scrambled up the steep place, and presently espied a nest in a bush, about a foot and a half from the ground. As had been anticipated, it turned out to be a green-tailed towhee's domicile, as was proved by the presence and uneasy chirping of a pair of those birds. While the nest at Breckenridge was set on the ground, this one was placed on the twigs of thick bushes, showing that these birds, like their eastern relatives, are fond of diversity in selecting nesting places.

This nest contained four bantlings, already well fledged. My notes say that their mouths were yellow-lined, and that the fleshy growths at the corners of their bills were yellow. Does the lining of the juvenile green-tail's mouth change from red to yellow as he advances in age? My notes certainly declare that the nestlings at Breckenridge had carmine-lined mouths. For the present I cannot settle the question either affirmatively or negatively.

Here I perpetrated a trick which I have ever since regretted. The temptation to hold a baby green-tail in my hand and examine it closely was so strong that, as carefully as I could, I drew one from its grassy crib and held it in my palm, noting the green tinting already beginning to show on its wings and back. Its tail was still too stubby to display the ornamentation that gives the species its popular name. So much was learned, but at the expense of the little family's peace of mind. As I held the bantling in my hand, the frightened mamma uttered a series of pitiful calls that were new to my ears, consisting of two notes in a low, complaining tone; it was more of an entreaty than a protest. Afterwards I heard the green-tails also give voice to a fine chirp almost like that of a chipping sparrow.

The mother's call seemed to strike terror to the hearts of her infant brood, for, as I attempted to put the baby back into its crib, all four youngsters set up a loud to-do, and sprang, panic stricken, over the rim, tumbling, fluttering, and falling through the network of twigs to the ground, a couple of them rolling a few feet down the dusty bank. Again and again I caught them and put them back into the nest, but they would not remain there, so I was compelled to leave them scrambling about among the bushes and rocks. I felt like a buccaneer, a veritable Captain Kidd. My sincere hope is that none of the birdkins came to grief on account of their premature flight from the nest. The next morning old and young were chirping about the place as I passed, and I hurried away, feeling sad that science and sentiment must sometimes come into conflict.

One day in the latter part of June, as I was climbing the steep side of a mesa in the neighborhood of Golden, my ear was greeted by a new style of bird music, which came lilting sweetly down to me from the height. It had a kind of wild, challenging ring about it, as if the singer were daring me to venture upon his demesne at my peril. A hard climb brought me at length within range of the little performer, who was blowing his Huon's horn from the pointed top of a large stone on the mesa's side. My field-glass was soon fixed upon him, revealing a little bird with a long beak, decurved at the end, a grayish-brown coat quite thickly barred and mottled on the wings and tail, and a vest of warm white finely sprinkled with a dusky gray. A queer, shy, timid little thing he was. Afterwards I met him often, but never succeeded in gaining his confidence or winning a single concession from him. He was the rock wren (Salpinctes obsoletus)—a species that is unknown east of the Great Plains, one well deserving a place in literature.

I was especially impressed with his peculiar style of minstrelsy, so different from anything I had ever heard in the bird realm. While the song was characterized by much variety, it usually opened with two or three loud, clear syllables, somewhat prolonged, sounding, as has been said, like a challenge, followed by a peculiar bubbling trill that seemed fairly to roll from the piper's tongue. Early one morning a few days later I heard a brilliant vocalist descanting from the top of a pump in a wide field among the foothills. How wildly his tones rang out on the crisp morning air! I seemed to be suddenly transported to another part of the world, his style of music was so new, so foreign to my ear. My pencilled notes say of this particular minstrel: "Very musical—great variety of notes—clear, loud, ringing—several runs slightly like Carolina's—others suggest Bewick's—but most of them sui generis."

Let us return to the first rock wren I saw. He was exceedingly shy, scurrying off to a more distant perch—another stone—as I approached. Sometimes he would run down among the bushes and rocks like a mouse, then glide to the top of another stone, and fling his pert little aria at the intruder. It was interesting to note that he most frequently selected for a singing perch the top of a high, pointed rock where he could command a view of his surroundings and pipe a note of warning to his mate at the approach of a supposed enemy. Almost every conspicuous rock on the acclivity bore evidence of having been used as a lookout by the little sentinel.

This wren is well named, for his home is among the rocks, in the crannies and niches of which his mate hides her nest so effectually that you must look long for it, and even after the most painstaking search you may not be able to find it. The little husband helps to lead you astray. He will leap upon a rock and send forth his bell-like peal, as if he were saying, "Right here, right here, here is our nest!" but when you go to the spot, he flits off to another rock and sounds the same challenge. And so you can form no idea of the nest site. My nearest approach to finding a nest was among the rocks and cliffs on the summit of a mountain a few miles from Golden, where an adult bird was seen to feed a youngster that had already flown from the nursery. It was interesting to know that the rock wrens breed at so high an altitude. However, they are not an alpine species, none having been seen by the writer over eight thousand feet above sea-level, although they have been known to ascend to an altitude of twelve thousand feet.

The fourth member of our feathered quartette was the oddest of all. On the thirtieth of June my companion and I were riding slowly down the mountain side a few miles below Gray's Peak, which we had scaled two days before. My ear was struck by a flicker's call above us, so I dismounted from my burro, and began to clamber up the hillside. Presently I heard a song that seemed one moment to be near at hand, the next far away, now to the right, now to the left, and anon directly above me. To my ear it was a new kind of bird minstrelsy. I climbed higher and higher, and yet the song seemed to be no nearer. It had a grosbeak-like quality, I fancied, and I hoped to find either the pine or the evening grosbeak, for both of which I had been making anxious search. The shifting of the song from point to point struck me as odd, and it was very mystifying.

Higher and higher I climbed, the mountain side being so steep that my breath came in gasps, and I was often compelled to throw myself on the ground to recover strength. At length a bird darted out from the pines several hundred feet above me, rose high into the air, circled and swung this way and that for a long time, breaking at intervals into a song which sifted down to me faintly through the blue distance. How long it remained on the wing I do not know, but it was too long for my eyes to endure the strain of watching it. Through my glass a large part of the wings showed white or yellowish-white, and seemed to be almost translucent in the blaze of the sunlight. What could this wonderful haunter of the sky be? It was scarcely possible that so roly-poly a bird as a grosbeak could perform so marvellous an exploit on the wing.

I never worked harder to earn my salary than I did to climb that steep and rugged mountain side; but at last I reached and penetrated the zone of pines, and finally, in an area covered with dead timber, standing and fallen, two feathered strangers sprang in sight, now flitting among the lower branches and now sweeping to the ground. They were not grosbeaks, that was sure; their bills were quite slender, their bodies lithe and graceful, and their tails of well-proportioned length. Save in color, they presented a decidedly thrush-like appearance, and their manners were also thrush-like.

Indeed, the colors and markings puzzled me not a little. The upper parts were brownish-gray of various shades, the wings and tail for the most part dusky, the wing-coverts, tertials, and some of the quills bordered and tipped with white, also the tail. The white of both wings and tail became quite conspicuous when they were spread. This was the feathered conundrum that flitted about before me. The birds were about the size of the hermit thrushes, but lither and suppler. They ambled about gracefully, and did not seem to be very shy, and presently one of them broke into a song—the song that I had previously heard, only it was loud and ringing and well articulated, now that I was near the singer. Again and again they lifted their rich voices in song. When they wandered a little distance from each other, they called in affectionate tones, giving their "All's well."

Then one of them, no doubt the male, darted from a pine branch obliquely into the air, and mounted up and up and up, in a series of graceful leaps, until he was a mere speck against the blue dome, gyrating to and fro in zigzag lines, or wheeling in graceful circles, his song dribbling faintly down to me at frequent intervals. A thing of buoyancy and grace, more angel than bird, that wonderful winged creature floated about in the cerulean sky; how long I do not know, whether five minutes, or ten, or twenty, but so long that at last I flung myself upon my back and watched him until my eyes ached. He kept his wings in constant motion, the white portions making them appear filmy as the sun shone upon them. Suddenly he bent his head, partly folded his wings, and swept down almost vertically like an arrow, alighting safe somewhere among the pines. I have seen other birds performing aerial evolutions accompanied with song, but have never known one to continue so long on the wing.

What was this wonderful bird? It was Townsend's solitaire (Myadestes townsendii)—a bird which is peculiar to the West, especially to the Rocky Mountains, and which belongs to the same family as the thrushes and bluebirds. No literature in my possession contains any reference to this bird's astonishing aerial flight and song, and I cannot help wondering whether other bird-students have witnessed the interesting exploit.

Subsequently I found a pair of solitaires on the plains near Arvada. The male was a powerful singer. Many of his outbursts were worthy of the mocking-bird, to some of whose runs they bore a close resemblance. He sang almost incessantly during the half day I spent in the neighborhood, my presence seeming to inspire him to the most prodigious lyrical efforts of which he was master. Sometimes he would sit on the top of a bush or a fence-post, but his favorite perches were several ridges of sand and gravel. His flight was the picture of grace, and he had a habit of lifting his wings, now one, now the other, and often both, after the manner of the mocking-bird on a chimney-top. He and his mate did not utter a chirp, but made a great to-do by singing, and finally I discovered that all the fuss was not about a nest, but about a hulking youngster that had outgrown his kilts and looked very like a brown thrasher. Neither of this second pair of solitaires performed any evolutions in the upper air; nor did another pair that I found far up a snow-clad mountain near Breckenridge, on the other side of the Continental Divide.

The scientific status of this unique bird is interesting. He is a species of the genus Myadestes, which belongs to the family Turdidæ, including the thrushes, stone-chats, and bluebirds, as well as the solitaires. He is therefore not a thrush, but is closely related to the genus Turdus, occupying the same relative position in the avi-faunal system. According to Doctor Coues the genus includes about twenty species, only one of which—the one just described—is native to the United States, the rest being found in the West Indies and Central and South America. Formerly the solitaires comprised a subfamily among the chatterers, but a later and more scientific classification places them in a genus under the head of Turdidæ.

The range of Townsend's solitaire is from the plains of Colorado to the Pacific coast and north to British Columbia. According to Robert Ridgway, he has even been met with "casually" in Illinois. In Colorado many of the solitaires are permanent residents in the mountains, remaining there throughout the winter. Some of them, however, visit the plains during the fall, winter, and spring. In the winter they may be found from the lower valleys to an elevation of ten thousand feet, while they are known to breed as high as twelve thousand feet. The nests are placed on the ground among rocks, fallen branches and logs, and are loosely constructed of sticks and grass. From three to six eggs compose a set, the ground color being white, speckled with reddish brown. Doctor Coues says the birds feed on insects and berries, and are "capable of musical expression in an exalted degree." With this verdict the writer is in full accord.

CHECK-LIST OF COLORADO BIRDS

CHECK-LIST OF COLORADO BIRDS

The author's preference would have been to begin the roll with the most interesting birds, those to which he gave the largest share of his attention, namely, the oscines, but he has decided to follow the order and nomenclature of the Check-List of North American birds as arranged by the American Ornithologists' Union. In deference to the general reader, however, he has placed the English name of each bird first, then the scientific designation. The numbers correspond to the American Check-List. By noting those omitted, the reader will readily discover what species have not been found in Colorado.

1. Western grebe. Æchmophorus occidentalis. Rare migrant; western species, chiefly interior regions of North America.

2. Holboell's grebe. Colymbus holboellii. Rare migrant; breeds far north; range, all of North America.

3. Horned grebe. Colymbus auritus. Rare migrant; range, almost the same as the last.

4. American eared grebe. Colymbus nigricollis californicus. Summer resident; rare in eastern, common in western Colorado; breeds from plains to 8,000 feet; partial to alkali lakes; western species.

6. Pied-billed grebe. Podilymbus podiceps. Summer resident, rare; common in migration; breeds in northern part of State; sometimes winters in southern part.

7. Loon. Gavia imber. Migrant; occasionally winter resident; not known to breed in State.

8. Yellow-billed loon. Gavia adamsii. Migrant; rare or accidental.

9. Black-throated loon. Gavia arctica. Rare fall and winter visitant.

37. Parasitic jaeger. Stercorarius parasiticus. Fall and winter resident; rare.

40. Kittiwake. Rissa tridactyla. Rare or accidental in winter.

49. Western gull. Larus occidentalis. Pacific Coast bird; accidental in Colorado; only one record.

51a. American herring gull. Larus argentatus smithsonianus. Rare migrant; range, the whole of North America.

53. California gull. Larus californicus. Western species; breeds abundantly in Utah; only three records for Colorado.

54. Ring-billed gull. Larus delawarensis. Not uncommon summer resident; common in migration; breeds as high as 7,500 feet; range, whole of North America.

58. Laughing gull. Larus atricilla. Bird of South Atlantic and Gulf States; once accidental in Colorado.

59. Franklin's gull. Larus franklinii. Rare migrant; range, interior of North America.

60. Bonaparte's gull. Larus philadelphia. Rare migrant; not uncommon in a few localities; range, whole of North America.

62. Sabine's gull. Xema sabinii. Rare winter visitant; breeds in the arctic regions.

69. Forster's tern. Sterna forsteri. Rare summer resident; common migrant; habitat, temperate North America.

71. Arctic tern. Sterna paradisæa. Very rare migrant; but two records; breeding habitat, circumpolar regions.

77. Black tern. Hydrochelidon nigra surinamensis. Common summer resident; both sides of range; habitat, temperate North America; in winter south as far as Brazil and Chili.

120. Double-crested cormorant. Phalacrocorax dilophus. Perhaps breeds in Colorado, as it breeds abundantly in Utah; all present records from eastern foothills.

125. American white pelican. Pelecanus erythrorhynchos. Once a common migrant; a few remained to breed; now rare; still noted on both sides of the range.

129. American merganser. Merganser americanus. Resident; common migrant and winter sojourner; a few breed in mountains and parks; generally distributed in North America.

130. Red-breasted merganser. Merganser serrator. Rare winter sojourner; common migrant; breeds far north.

131. Hooded merganser. Lophodytes cucullatus. Rare resident both summer and winter; breeds in eastern part and in the mountains; general range, North America.

132. Mallard. Anas boschas. Very common in migration; common in winter; breeds below 9,000 feet, on plains as well as in mountains; general range, whole northern hemisphere.

134a. Mottled duck. Anas fulvigula maculosa. Rare migrant; an eastern species, sometimes wandering west to plains.

135. Gadwall. Chaulelasmus streperus. Summer resident; common in migration; breeds on plains; also in sloughs and small lakes at an elevation of 11,000 feet in southern part of State; breeds abundantly at San Luis Lakes.

137. Baldpate. Mareca americana. Summer resident; breeds from plains to 8,000 feet.

139. Green-winged teal. Nettion carolinensis. Common summer resident; abundant in migration; a few breed on the plains; more in mountains and upper parks.

140. Blue-winged teal. Querquedula discors. Same records as preceding.

141. Cinnamon teal. Querquedula cyanoptera. Common summer resident; breeds both east and west of the range; a western species; in winter south to Chili, Argentina, and Falkland Islands; sometimes strays east as far as Illinois and Louisiana.

142. Shoveller. Spatula clypeata. Summer resident; abundant in migration; breeds in suitable localities, but prefers mountain parks 8,000 feet in altitude; breeds throughout its range, which is the whole of North America.

143. Pintail. Dafila acuta. Rare summer and winter resident; common migrant; mostly breeds in the North.

144. Wood duck. Aix sponsa. Rare summer resident.

146. Redhead. Aythya americana. Common migrant; breeds far north; migrates early in spring.

147. Canvas-back. Aythya vallisneria. Migrant; not common; breeds far north.

148. Scaup duck. Aythya marila. Rare migrant; both sides of the range; breeds far north.

149. Lesser scaup duck. Aythya affinis. Migrant; not common; a little more common than preceding.

150. Ring-necked duck. Aythya collaris. Rare migrant, though common in Kansas; breeds in far North.

151. American golden-eye. Clangula clangula americana. Rare migrant; breeds far north.

152. Barrow's golden-eye. Clangula islandica. Summer and winter resident; a northern species, but breeds in mountains of Colorado, sometimes as high as 10,000 feet; rare on plains.

153. Buffle-head. Charitonetta albeola. Common migrant throughout State; breeds in the North.

154. Old squaw. Harelda hyemalis. Rare winter visitor; a northern species.

155. Harlequin duck. Histrionicus histrionicus. Resident; not common; a northern species, but a few breed in mountains at an altitude of 7,000 to 10,000 feet.

160. American eider. Somateria dresseri. Very rare; only two records—one somewhat uncertain.

163. American scoter. Oidemia americana. Rare winter visitor; northern bird, in winter principally along the sea-coast, but a few visit the larger inland lakes.

165. White-winged scoter. Oidemia deglandi. Same habits as preceding; perhaps rarer.

166. Surf scoter. Oidemia perspicillata. Same as preceding.

167. Ruddy duck. Erismatura jamaicensis. Common summer resident; both sides of the range; breeds from plains to 10,000 feet; a beautiful bird; author's observations given in Chapter VII.

169. Lesser snow goose. Chen hyperborea. Migrant and winter resident; not common; breeds far north.

169a. Greater snow goose. Chen hyperborea nivalis. Rare migrant; only two records; the eastern form, which does not come regularly as far west as Colorado.

171a. American white-fronted goose. Anser albifrons gambeli. Rare migrant; breeds far northward.

172. Canada goose. Branta canadensis. Summer and winter resident; rare, except locally; common in migration; breeds about secluded lakes at 10,000 feet.

172a. Hutchins's goose. Branta canadensis hutchinsii. Common migrant; breeds in the North; a few may winter in the State.

172c. Cackling goose. Branta canadensis minima. One record; Pacific coast bird; breeds in Alaska.

173. Brant. Branta bernicla. Rare or accidental migrant; an eastern species seldom coming west; breeds only within the Arctic Circle.

180. Whistling swan. Olor columbianus. Migrant; not common; formerly fairly plentiful; breeds far northward.

181. Trumpeter swan. Olor buccinator. Rare migrant; not so common as preceding; breeds from Iowa and Dakota northward.

183. Roseate spoonbill. Ajaja ajaja. Accidental; two instances; habitat, tropical and subtropical America.

184. White ibis. Guara alba. Rare migrant; one taken on plains; habitat, tropical and subtropical America, coming north as far as Great Salt Lake and South Dakota.

[185.] Scarlet ibis. Guara rubra. Accidental; one specimen taken; a wonderful record for this tropical species.

186. Glossy ibis. Plegadis autumnalis. Accidental; two fine specimens taken in the State; this is far out of its ordinary tropical range.

187. White-faced glossy ibis. Plegadis guarauna. Summer visitor; rare; fairly common in New Mexico and Arizona; sometimes wanders into Colorado; Aiken found it breeding at San Luis Lakes.

188. Wood ibis. Tantalus loculator. Rare summer visitor; southern range.

190. American bittern. Botaurus lentiginosus. Common summer resident; breeds throughout the State, from plains to about 7,000 feet.

191. Least bittern. Ardetta exilis. Rare summer visitor; a few records east of mountains; one specimen seen west of the divide.

194. Great blue heron. Ardea herodias. Summer resident; common in migration; seldom goes far up in the mountains, though Mr. Aiken found one at an altitude of 9,000 feet.

196. American egret. Ardea egretta. Rare or accidental; one seen; general range, the whole of the United States; in winter south to Chili and Patagonia.

197. Snowy heron. Ardea candidissima. Summer visitor; not known to breed; the highest altitude is the one taken near Leadville, 10,000 feet.

198. Reddish egret. Ardea rufescens. Rare or accidental; only two specimens secured; southern range.

202. Black-crowned night heron. Nycticorax nycticorax nævius. Summer resident; not common; local; more plentiful in migration.

203. Yellow-crowned night heron. Nycticorax violaceus. Rare summer visitor; southern species; not known to breed in State.

204. Whooping crane. Grus americana. Rare migrant; more common east of Colorado.

205. Little brown crane. Grus canadensis. Migrant; few taken; northern breeder.

206. Sandhill crane. Grus mexicana. Summer resident; not uncommon locally; in migration common; breeds as high as 8,000 feet; has been seen in autumn passing over the highest peaks.

212. Virginia rail. Rallus virginianus. Summer resident; not uncommon; breeds on plains and in mountains to at least 7,500 feet.

214. Sora. Porzana carolina. Common summer resident; breeds from plains to 9,000 feet.

216. Black rail. Porzana jamaicensis. Rare migrant; one specimen secured.

219. Florida gallinule. Gallinula galeata. Summer visitor, not known to breed.

221. American coot. Fulica americana. Common summer resident; breeds on plains and in mountain parks.

222. Red phalarope. Crymophilus fulicarius. Migrant; rare; once taken at Loveland by Edw. A. Preble, July 25, 1895. Breeds far north.

223. Northern phalarope. Phalaropus lobatus. Migrant; not uncommon; breeds far northward.

224. Wilson's phalarope. Steganopus tricolor. Common summer resident; more common in migration; breeds below 6,000 feet.

225. American avocet. Recurvirostra americana. Common summer resident; occurs frequently on the plains; less frequent in mountains.

226. Black-necked stilt. Himantopus mexicanus. Summer resident; most common in the mountains, going as high as 8,000 feet; more common west of range than east.

228. American woodcock. Philohela minor. Rare summer resident; Colorado the extreme western limit of its range, going only to foothills.

230. Wilson's snipe. Gallinago delicata. Rare summer resident; common migrant; winter resident, rare; found as high as 10,000 feet.

232. Long-billed dowitcher. Macrorhamphus scolopaceus. Somewhat common migrant; all records restricted to plains; breeds far northward.

233. Stilt sandpiper. Micropalama himantopus. Rare migrant; breeds north of United States.

239. Pectoral sandpiper. Tringa maculta. Common migrant; occurs from the plains to the great height of 13,000 feet.

240. White-rumped sandpiper. Tringa fuscicollis. Not uncommon migrant; a bird of the plains, its western limit being the base of the Rockies; breeds in the far North.

241. Baird's sandpiper. Tringa bairdii. Abundant migrant; breeds far north; returns in August and ranges over mountains sometimes at height of 13,000 to 14,000 feet, feeding on grasshoppers.

242. Least sandpiper. Tringa minutilla. Common migrant; found from plains to 7,000 feet.

243a. Red-backed sandpiper. Tringa alpina pacifica. Rare migrant; only three records; range, throughout North America.

246. Semipalmated sandpiper. Ereunetes pusillus. Common migrant; from the plains to 8,000 feet.

247. Western sandpiper. Ereunetes occidentalis. Rare migrant; breeds in the remote North; western species, but in migration occurs regularly along the Atlantic coast.

248. Sanderling. Calidris arenaria. Rare migrant, on plains; range nearly cosmopolitan; breeds only in northern part of northern hemisphere.

249. Marbled godwit. Limosa fedoa. Migrant; not common; a bird of the plains, but seldom seen; occasionally found in the mountains.

254. Greater yellow-legs. Totanus melanoleucus. Common migrant; in favorable localities below 8,000 feet.

255. Yellow-legs. Totanus flavipes. Common migrant; distribution same as preceding.

256. Solitary sandpiper. Helodromas solitarius. Summer resident; not common; in migration, common; breeds from plains to 10,000 feet.

258a. Western willet. Symphemia semipalmata inornata. Summer resident; not common; common migrant, especially in the fall; breeds from plains to 7,000 feet.

261. Bartramian sandpiper. Bartramia longicauda. Common summer resident; abundant in migration; a bird of the plains; rare west of mountains.

263. Spotted sandpiper. Actitis macularia. Abundant summer resident; breeds on the plains and at all intermediate altitudes to 12,000 feet, even on top of mountains of that height, if a lake or pond can be found; in fall, ranges above timber-line to 14,000 feet; some may remain throughout winter.

264. Long-billed curlew. Numenius longirostris. Common summer resident; breeds on the plains; also in Middle and South Parks; found on both sides of the range.

265. Hudsonian curlew. Numenius hudsonicus. Rare migrant; all records thus far from the plains; general range, North America.

270. Black-bellied plover. Squatarola squatarola. Migrant, not common; bird of plains below 5,000 feet; breeds far north.

272. American golden plover. Charadrius dominicus. Migrant, not common; same record as preceding.

273. Killdeer. Ægialitis vocifera. Abundant summer resident; arrives early in spring; breeds most abundantly on plains and at base of foothills, but is far from rare at an altitude of 10,000 feet.

274. Semipalmated plover. Ægialitis semipalmata. Migrant, not common; breeds near the Arctic Circle.

281. Mountain plover. Ægialitis montana. Common summer resident; in spite of its name, a bird of the plains rather than the mountains; yet sometimes found in parks at an altitude of 8,000 and even 9,000 feet. Its numbers may be estimated from the fact that in one day of August a sportsman shot one hundred and twenty-six birds, though why he should indulge in such wholesale slaughter the author does not understand.

283. Turnstone. Arenaria interpres. Rare migrant; breeding grounds in the north; cosmopolitan in range, but chiefly along sea-coasts.

289. Bob-white. Colinus virginianus. Resident; somewhat common locally; good reason to believe that all the quails of the foothills are descendants of introduced birds, while those of the eastern border of the plains are native. A few were introduced some years ago into Estes Park, and are still occasionally noticed.

293. Scaled partridge. Callipepla squamata. Resident; common locally; southern species, but more common than the bob-white at Rocky Ford, Col.

294. California partridge. Lophortyx californicus. Resident, local; introduced at Grand Junction, Col., and have flourished so abundantly as to become troublesome to gardeners.

295. Gambel's partridge. Lophortyx gambelii. Resident, rare; known only in southwestern part of the State; a western species.

297. Dusky grouse. Dendragapus obscurus. Resident; mountain dwellers; breed from 7,000 feet to timber-line; in September wander above timber-line to 12,500 feet, feeding on grasshoppers; remain in thick woods in winter.

300b. Gray ruffed grouse. Bonasa umbellus umbelloides. Rare resident; a more northern species, but a few breed in Colorado just below timber-line; winters in higher foothills.

304. White-tailed ptarmigan. Lagopus leucurus. Common resident; one of the most strictly alpine species; breeds entirely above timber-line from 11,500 to 13,500 feet; thence ranging to the summits of the highest peaks. Only in severest winter weather do they come down to timber-line; rarely to 8,000 feet. In winter they are white; in summer fulvous or dull grayish-buff, barred and spotted with black. This bird is colloquially called the "mountain quail." The brown-capped leucosticte is the only other Colorado species that has so high a range.

305. Prairie hen. Tympanuchus americanus. Resident; uncommon and local.

308b. Prairie sharp-tailed grouse. Pediœcetes phasianellus campestris. Resident, not common; once common, but killed and driven out by pothunters; some breed in Middle Park; noted in winter at 9,500 feet.

309. Sage grouse. Centrocercus urophasianus. Common resident. "As its name implies, it is an inhabitant of the artemisia or sage-brush plains, and is scarcely found elsewhere." Ranges from plains to 9,500 feet.

310. Mexican turkey. Meleagris gallopavo. Rare local resident; southern part of the State.

310a. Wild turkey. Meleagris gallopavo fera. Resident; rare; once abundant, but will probably soon be exterminated; not certain whether Colorado birds are eastern or western forms.

312. Band-tailed pigeon. Columba fasciata. Summer resident; local; breeds from 5,000 to 7,000 feet and occasionally higher.

316. Mourning dove. Zenaidura macroura. Summer resident; very abundant; breeds everywhere below the pine region up to 10,000 feet, though usually a little lower; in fall ranges up to 12,000 feet.

319. White-winged dove. Melopelia leucoptera. Four records of this straggler in Colorado; its usual range is subtropical, though not uncommon as far north as the southern border of the United States.

325. Turkey vulture. Cathartes aura. Common summer resident; breeds from plains to 10,000 and even 12,000 feet.

327. Swallow-tailed kite. Elanoides forficatus. Summer visitor; rare or accidental; bird of the plains, not regularly west of central Kansas.

329. Mississippi kite. Ictinia mississippiensis. Accidental; two records; a bird of eastern and southern United States, and southward.

331. Marsh hawk. Circus hudsonius. Common resident; most common in migration; a few remain throughout winter; breeds on plains, and in mountains to 10,000 feet; in fall may be seen at 14,000 feet.

332. Sharp-shinned hawk. Accipiter velox. Common resident; much more common in mountains than on plains; breeds up to 10,000 feet.

333. Cooper's hawk. Accipiter cooperi. Common resident; breeds from plains to 9,000 feet.

334. American goshawk. Accipiter atricapillus. Resident; not uncommon; breeds from 9,000 to 10,000 feet; more common in winter than summer.

334a. Western goshawk. Accipiter atricapillus striatulus. Winter visitor; rare, if not accidental; Pacific Coast form; comes regularly as far east as Idaho.

337a. Krider's hawk. Buteo borealis kriderii. Resident; not uncommon; nests on the plains; no certain record for the mountains.

337b. Western red-tail. Buteo borealis calurus. Abundant resident; this is the Rocky Mountain form, of which Krider's hawk is the eastern analogue; the ranges of the two forms overlap on the Colorado plains; calurus breeds from plains to 12,000 feet; not a few winter in the State.

337d. Harlan's hawk. Buteo borealis harlani. Rare winter visitor; one specimen; natural habitat, Gulf States and lower Mississippi Valley.

339b. Red-bellied hawk. Buteo lineatus elegans. Rare migrant; Pacific coast species.

342. Swainson's hawk. Buteo swainsoni. Common resident; breeds everywhere below 11,000 feet.

347a. American rough-legged hawk. Archibuteo lagopus sancti-johannis. Somewhat common winter resident; arrives from the north in November and remains till March.

348. Ferruginous rough-leg. Archibuteo ferrugineus. Rather common resident; breeds on plains and in mountains; winters mostly on plains and along lower streams.

349. Golden eagle. Aquila chrysaetos. Resident; common in favorable localities; breeds from foothills to 12,500 feet; in winter on plains and also in mountains, often at 11,000 feet.

352. Bald eagle. Hallæetus leucocephalus. Fairly common resident; mostly in mountains in summer; on plains in winter.

355. Prairie falcon. Falco mexicanus. Not uncommon resident; breeds from plains to 10,000 feet; quite numerous in more open portions of western Colorado.

356. Duck hawk. Falco peregrinus anatum. Resident; not uncommon locally; breeds up to 10,000 feet.

357. Pigeon hawk. Falco columbarius. Summer resident; not common; usual breeding grounds 8,000 to 9,000 feet; some breed on the plains.

358. Richardson's merlin. Falco richardsonii. Rare summer resident; not uncommon in migration; naturalists not quite sure that it breeds in the State; has been taken in summer at an altitude of 11,000 feet.

360. American sparrow hawk. Falco sparverius. Abundant resident; the most common hawk from the plains to 11,000 feet; some winter in State; breeds throughout its range.

360a. Desert sparrow hawk. Falco sparverius deserticolus. Resident, though rare; taken in Middle and South Parks.

364. American osprey. Pandion haliaëtus carolinensis. Summer resident; not uncommon locally; breeds as high as 9,000 feet; has been taken in fall at an altitude of 10,500 feet.

365. American barn owl. Strix pratincola. Resident; quite rare; a southern species rarely coming so far north as Colorado.

366. American long-eared owl. Asio wilsonianus. Common resident; winters from plains to 10,000 feet; breeds from plains to 11,000 feet; eggs laid early in April.

367. Short-eared owl. Asio accipitrinus. Resident, but not common; highest record 9,500 feet.

368. Barred owl. Syrnium nebulosum. Resident; few records; one breeding pair found in the northeastern part of the State.

369. Spotted owl. Syrnium occidentale. Resident; not common; a little doubt as to its identity; but Mr. Aiken vouches for its presence in the State.

371. Richardson's owl. Nyctala tengmalmi richardsoni. Rare winter visitor; a northern species.

372. Saw-whet owl. Nyctala acadica. Resident; not uncommon; occurs throughout the State below 8,000 feet.

373. Screech owl. Magascops asio. Rare resident; the eastern analogue of the next.

373e. Rocky Mountain screech owl. Magascops asio maxwelliæ. Common resident; found from plains and foothills to about 6,000 feet; rare visitant at nearly 9,000 feet.

373g. Aiken's screech owl. Megascops asio aikeni. Resident; limited to from 5,000 to 9,000 feet.

374. Flammulated screech owl. Megascops flammeola. Rare resident; rarest owl in Colorado, if not in the United States; ten instances of breeding, all in Colorado; twenty-three records in all for the State.

375a. Western horned owl. Bubo virginianus pallescens. Common resident; breeds on the plains and in the mountains.

375b. Arctic horned owl. Bubo virginianus arcticus. Winter visitor; not uncommon; breeds in arctic America.

376. Snowy owl. Nyctea nyctea. Rare winter visitor; occurs on the plains and in the lower foothills; range in summer, extreme northern portions of northern hemisphere.

378. Burrowing owl. Speotyto cunicularia hypogæa. Resident; abundant locally; breeds on plains and up to 9,000 feet.

379. Pygmy owl. Glaucidium gnoma. Resident; rare; favorite home in the mountains; breeds as high as 10,000 feet.

382. Carolina paroquet. Conurus carolinensis. Formerly resident; few records; general range, east and south; now almost exterminated.

385. Road-runner. Geococcyx californianus. Resident; not common; restricted to southern portion of the State; breeds throughout its range; rare above 5,000 feet, though one was found in the Wet Mountains at an altitude of 8,000 feet.

387. Yellow-billed cuckoo. Coccyzus americanus. Rare summer visitor, on the authority of Major Bendire.

387a. California cuckoo. Coccyzus americanus occidentalis. Summer resident; not uncommon locally; mostly found on the edge of the plains, but occasionally up to 8,000 feet in mountains.

388. Black-billed cuckoo. Coccyzus erythrophthalmus. Rare migrant; only two records.

390. Belted kingfisher. Ceryle alcyon. Common resident; breeds from plains to 10,000 feet; a few remain in winter.

393e. Rocky Mountain hairy woodpecker. Dryobates villosus monticola. Common resident; breeds from plains to 11,000 feet; winter range almost the same.

394c. Downy woodpecker. Dryobates pubescens medianus. Visitor; rare, if not accidental.

394b. Batchelder's woodpecker. Dryobates pubescens homorus. Common resident; breeding range from plains to 11,500 feet; winter range from plains to 10,000 feet.

396. Texan woodpecker. Dryobates scalaris bairdi. Resident; rare and local; southern range generally.

401b. Alpine three-toed woodpecker. Picoides americanus dorsalis. Resident; not common; a mountain bird; range, 8,000 to 12,000 feet; even in winter remains in the pine belt at about 10,000 feet.

402. Yellow-bellied sapsucker. Sphyrapicus varius. Rare migrant; eastern form, scarcely reaching the base of the Rockies.

402a. Red-naped sapsucker. Sphyrapicus varius nuchalis. Common summer resident; breeds from plains to 12,000 feet, but partial to the mountains. Author saw one at Green Lake.

404. Williamson's sapsucker. Sphyrapicus thyroideus. Common summer resident; breeds from 5,000 feet to upper limits of the pines; range higher in the southern part of the State than in the northern.

405a. Northern pileated woodpecker. Ceophlœus pileatus abieticola. Resident; very rare; only probably identified.

406. Red-headed woodpecker. Melanerpes erythrocephalus. Common summer resident; breeds from plains to 10,000 feet; late spring arrival; same form in the East and West.

408. Lewis's woodpecker. Melanerpes torquatus. Common resident; characteristic bird of the foothills; sometimes seen as high as 10,000 feet in southern Colorado; probably does not breed above 9,000 feet.

409. Red-bellied woodpecker. Melanerpes carolinus. Summer visitor; rare, if not accidental; eastern and southern species, not occurring regularly west of central Kansas.

412a. Northern flicker. Colaptes auratus luteus. Rare migrant; range extends only to foothills; no record of its breeding.

413. Red-shafted flicker. Colaptes cafer. Abundant summer resident; breeds from plains to 12,000 feet; almost as plentiful at its highest range as on the plains; early spring arrival; a few winter in the State.

418. Poor-will. Phalænoptilus nuttallii. Common summer resident; breeds from plains to 8,000 feet; has been noted up to 10,000 feet.

418a. Frosted poor-will. Phalænoptilus nuttallii nitidus. Rare summer resident; few typical nitidus taken; a more southern variety.

420a. Western nighthawk. Chordeiles virginianus henryi. Abundant summer resident; breeds on the plains and up to about 11,000 feet; in fall ranges up to 12,000 feet; most common on plains and in foothills.

422. Black swift. Cypseloides niger borealis. Summer resident; abundant locally; southwestern part of the State; breeds from 10,000 to 12,000 feet, and ranges up to 13,000 feet.

425. White-throated swift. Aeronautes melanoleucus. Summer resident; not uncommon locally; breeds in inaccessible rocks from 6,000 to 12,000 feet, if not higher; most common in southern part of the State.

429. Black-chinned humming-bird. Trochilus alexandri. Summer resident; local; only in southwestern part of the State, and below 6,000 feet.

432. Broad-tailed humming-bird. Selasphorus platycercus. Common summer resident; Colorado's most common hummer; breeds from foothills to 11,000 feet; ranges 2,000 feet above timber-line in summer.

433. Rufous humming-bird. Selasphorus rufus. Summer resident; local; a western species, coming into southwestern Colorado, where it breeds from 7,000 to 10,000 feet, and ranges in summer several thousand feet higher; a few records east of the range.

436. Calliope humming-bird. Stellula calliope. Summer visitor; rare or accidental; but two records, one near Breckenridge at an altitude of 9,500 feet; western species.

443. Scissor-tailed flycatcher. Milvulus forficatus. Summer visitor; rare or accidental; but one record; southern range, and more eastern.

444. Kingbird. Tyrannus tyrannus. Common summer resident; occurs only on plains and in foothills up to 6,000 feet; same form as the eastern kingbird.

447. Arkansas kingbird. Tyrannus verticalis. Common summer resident; more common in eastern than western part of the State; fond of the plains and foothills, yet breeds as high as 8,000 feet.

448. Cassin's kingbird. Tyrannus vociferans. Common summer resident; breeds on plains and up to 9,000 feet in mountains; occurs throughout the State.

454. Ash-throated flycatcher. Myiarchus cinerascens. Rare summer resident; western species, coming east to western edge of plains.

455a. Olivaceous flycatcher. Myiarchus lawrencei olivascens. Summer visitor, rare, if not accidental; a southern species; taken once in Colorado.

456. Phœbe. Sayornis phœbe. Rare summer visitor; comes west to eastern border of the State.

457. Say's phœbe. Sayornis saya. Common summer resident; most common on the plains; occurs on both sides of the range; the author found it a little above Malta, at Glenwood, and in South Park.

459. Olive-sided flycatcher. Contopus borealis. Common summer resident; breeds only in the mountains, from 7,000 to 12,000 feet.

462. Western wood pewee. Contopus richardsonii. Common summer resident; most common in breeding season from 7,000 to 11,000 feet.

464. Western flycatcher. Empidonax difficilis. Common summer resident; breeds from plains to 10,000 feet, but most common in upper part of its range.

466. Traill's flycatcher. Empidonax traillii. Fairly common summer resident; most common on the plains, but occurs in mountains up to 8,000 feet; breeds throughout its Colorado range.

467. Least flycatcher. Empidonax minimus. Rare migrant; west to eastern foothills; probably breeds, but no nests have been found.

468. Hammond's flycatcher. Empidonax hammondi. Common summer resident; comes east only to the western edge of the plains; breeds as high as 9,000 feet.

469. Wright's flycatcher. Empidonax wrightii. Abundant summer resident; breeds from 7,500 feet to 10,000.

474a. Pallid horned lark. Otocoris alpestris leucolæma. Abundant winter resident; literature on this bird somewhat confused on account, no doubt, of its close resemblance to the next; winters on the plains abundantly, and sparsely in the mountains.

474c. Desert horned lark. Otocoris alpestris arenicola. Abundant resident; winters on plains and in mountains up to 9,000 feet; breeds from plains to 13,000 feet; raises two broods.

475. American magpie. Pica pica hudsonica. Common resident; breeds commonly on the plains and in the foothills and lower mountains; a few breed as high as 11,000 feet.