Chapter XIX: Part 19

The nest of this bird is usually placed well up in a small dead fir tree in some burn or slashing on dry ground. It is about ten inches deep and has no lining save fine chips, among which the crystal white eggs, four or five in number, lie partially imbedded. Incubation is begun from the last week in April to the last week in May, according to altitude, and but one brood is raised in a season. These Woodpeckers are exceptionally valiant in defense of their young, the male in particular becoming almost beside himself with rage at the appearance of an enemy near the home nest.

No. 165.
DOWNY WOODPECKER.

A. O. U. No. 394 c. Dryobates pubescens medianus (Swains.).

Description.—Similar to _D. v. monticola_, but much smaller;
wing-coverts heavily spotted with white,—a round blotch on tip of each
feather; wing-quills and primary-coverts heavily spotted with white on
both webs, the blotches on outer webs forming bars on the closed wing;
tertials barred and tipped with white; the outer tail-feathers barred
with black; underparts white or slightly soiled. Length of adult
6.25-7.00 (158.8-177.8); wing 3.75 (95.3); tail 2.60 (66.1); bill .66
(16.8).

Recognition Marks.—Sparrow size; black-and-white color pattern with
small size distinctive; red nape of male; heavily white-spotted on
wings as compared with D. p. homorus; white below as compared with _D.
p. gairdnerii_.

Nesting.—Does not breed in Washington. _Nest_: A hole in stub or
decayed limb of tree, usually at moderate height, unlined. _Eggs_:
4-6, white. Av. size, .75 × .59 (19.1 × 15).

General Range.—Middle and northern portions of United States and
northward; of casual occurrence in the Pacific Northwest.

Range in Washington.—One example, Seattle, Feb. 20, 1892, by S. F.
Rathbun.

Authorities.—_Dryobates pubescens_ (Linn.), Bendire, Life Hist. N. A.
Birds, Vol. II. 1895, pp. 55, 56. Ra.

Specimens.—P¹(?). C. E.

On the 20th of February, 1892, Mr. S. F. Rathbun took what is considered to be a typical specimen, a female, of this species, near Seattle; and on the 23rd of March, 1896, I took one at Chelan which belongs either to this or to the more recently elaborated _D. p. nelsoni_. Apart from _D. gairdnerii_, whose center of distribution, at least, is pretty well known, great confusion exists in our knowledge of _Dryobates pubescens_ and its varieties in the Northwest. Downy Woodpeckers are not migratory, but they rove considerably in winter, and the most we can say of these Washington specimens is that they point to the presence of _D. pubescens_ or _D. p. nelsoni_, or both, as resident birds in British Columbia.

No. 166.
BATCHELDER’S WOODPECKER.

A. O. U. No. 394b. Dryobates pubescens homorus (Cab.).

Synonym.—Rocky Mountain Downy Woodpecker.

Description.—Similar to _D. p. medianus_, but larger, clearer white
below, and with less white spotting on wing, that of middle and
greater coverts reduced or wanting. Length: 6.75-7.50 (171.5-190.5);
wing 4.00 (101.6); tail 2.65 (67.3); bill .73 (18.5).

Recognition Marks.—As in preceding; white spotting of wing reduced as
compared with _D. p. medianus_; underparts _clear white_ as compared
with _D. p. gairdnerii_.

Nesting.—_Nest_ and _Eggs_ as in preceding. _Season_: May; one brood.

General Range.—Rocky Mountain region of western United States and
British Columbia, west to eastern slopes of Cascade-Sierra Range.

Range in Washington.—East-side, not uncommon resident, especially in
valleys of more heavily timbered section; intergrades with next form
on eastern slopes of Cascades.

Authorities.—Dawson, Auk, Vol. XIV. 1897, p. 174. J. E(H).

Specimens.—U. of W. Prov.

In the nature of the case the line of demarcation cannot be clearly drawn between this species and the more abundant Gairdner’s. Specimens taken by Dr. J. C. Merrill, U. S. A., at Fort Sherman, Idaho, near our eastern boundary, were doubtfully referred to this subspecies, and really represent intergrades between _homorus_ and _gairdnerii_. I have seen specimens in Spokane County which favored this form, in the whiteness of the underparts, much more strongly than _gairdnerii_.

Moreover, Batchelder’s Woodpecker, if it be he, is not nearly so common in the pine and larch districts of the extreme Northeast, as is the Rocky Mountain Hairy. In the course of a two-weeks’ trip along the Pend d’Oreille in May and June we encountered it only once. Bendire met with Downy Woodpeckers of some sort near Walla Walla, but found them of rare occurrence and confined to the willows of stream banks.

No. 167.
GAIRDNER’S WOODPECKER.

A. O. U. No. 394a. Dryobates pubescens gairdnerii (Aud.).

Description.—Similar to _D. p. homorus_, but white spotting of wing
still further reduced, usually wanting on coverts; underparts smoky
gray; under tail-coverts spotted or barred with black. Length of adult
about as in _D. p. medianus_.

Recognition Marks.—Sparrow size; black-and-white pattern of head;
white back contrasting with black scapulars, etc.; much the commonest
woodpecker; wing scarcely spotted as compared with _D. p. medianus_;
underparts smoky as compared with _D. p. homorus_.

Nesting.—_Nest_: A hole, usually in deciduous tree, some 20 feet up.
_Eggs_: 4-6, glossy crystalline white; rounded ovate in shape. Av.
size, .74 × .56 (18.8 × 14.2). _Season_: c. May 1st; one brood.

General Range.—Pacific coast district from southern California north
to British Columbia; extends somewhat beyond eastern slopes of
mountain ranges southerly, shades into _D. p. homorus_ along ridge of
Cascades northerly.

Range in Washington.—West-side, common resident, especially in lowland
groves and about clearings; occupies eastern slopes of Cascades
southerly.

Authorities.—_Picus gairdneri_, Audubon, Orn. Biog. V. 1839, 317. T.
C&S. Rh. Kb. Ra. D². Ss². Kk. B. E.

Specimens.—U. of W. Prov. B. E.

The local representative of the widespread Downy type is a perfect miniature of the more abundant Harris Woodpecker, even in flight and voice; and to the same causes must be attributed the soiling of a bosom once immaculate. Unlike his greater double, however, Gairdner’s Woodpecker is for the most part confined to deciduous timber, and shows a great preference for wooded bottoms and the borders of streams. Here his industrious tap, tap and cheery _pink_ notes may be heard not alone from the trunks of trees, but from the smaller branches. These he traces to the very end in a search for lurking grub or nit.

The presence of this bird is a benediction in an orchard, for he inspects every niche and crevice of a fruit tree, and if he finds deep-seated troubles, the holes he drives are as necessary as the physician’s lancet. But folks still call them “sapsuckers,” and shoot their little benefactors. Such people should be fined, for a first offense; and the fine remitted only in case they agree to “read up.” For a second offense—Well, I believe in capital punishment myself.

The little Downies, strictly resident, as they are, wherever found, are not so hardly put to it to subsist in winter here as they are north and east. If grubs are scarce there are always edible berries and seeds to fall back on. Yet Gairdners relish nuts or a bit of suet hung out in winter time; and if the would-be patron be not too eager in first advances a very pretty friendship may be established in the course of a season.

Also, because of the season’s mildness, winter bird troupes are not such an important institution as in the frigid East. But wherever Kinglets, Juncoes, Creepers, Wrens, and Chickadees do associate together for benevolent offense and defense, there is Downy in the midst,—and one can hardly help adding (the Master would be the last to forbid it) “and that to bless.”

It is at times difficult to distinguish, in the case of the _pink_ notes and the longer rattling call, between the voices of this bird and the Harris, but the notes of the smaller bird are usually much less in volume and strength, and have a rather more nasal quality. All Woodpeckers have also a sort of signal system, or Morse code, consisting of sundry tattoos on resonant wood. These calls are used principally, or exclusively, during the mating season, and consist, in the case of the Gairdner, of six or seven taps in regular and moderate succession. The birds have favorite places for the production of these sounds; and it is probable that birds are able to distinguish their calling mates by the timbre of the smitten wood, as well as by some subtle variation of tempo which escapes unfamiliar ears.

Gairdners place their nests at inconsiderable heights in deciduous trees, and those, if possible, among thick growths on moist ground. Both sexes assist in excavation, as in incubation. Partially decayed wood is selected and an opening made about an inch and a quarter in diameter. After driving straight in an inch or two, the passage turns down and widens two or three diameters. At a depth of a foot or so the crystal white eggs are deposited on a neat bed of fine chips. Incubation lasts twelve days and the young are hatched about the 1st of June.

Mr. Bowles asserts that when a tree containing eggs is rapped the sitting bird will try, sometimes successfully, to deceive the inquirer by coming to the entrance and dropping out a mouthful of chippings, thus conveying the impression that she is still building. It’s a shame to give it away.

No. 168.
WHITE-HEADED WOODPECKER.

A. O. U. No. 399. Xenopicus albolarvatus (Cass.).

Description.—_Adult male_: Body plumage and tail glossy black; wings
dull black with large blotch of white on median portion of inner
primaries and secondaries, and some disconnected white spotting
distally; throat and entire head (not deeply) white; a scarlet patch
on nape. Bill and feet slaty black; iris red. _Female_: Exactly as
male _without_ scarlet nuchal band. Length: 9.00-9.50 (228.6-241.3);
wing 5.15 (130.8); tail 3.50 (88.9).

Recognition Marks.—Chewink to Robin size; white head unique.

Nesting.—_Nest_: A hole in live pine tree at moderate height. _Eggs_:
3-7, usually 4, pure white. Av. size, .95 × .71 (24.1 × 18). _Season_:
June-July, according to altitude; one brood.

General Range.—Mountains of the Pacific Coast States north into
British Columbia, east to Idaho and Utah.

Range in Washington.—Resident in the mountains, chiefly east of the
Cascade summit.

Authorities.—_Picus albolarvatus_, Baird, Rep. Pac. R. R. Surv. IX.
1858, p. 97. C&S. D¹. D². J.

Specimens.—Prov. C.

There is a Gray’s Harbor record for this bird, but the occurrence is unique west of the Cascades. So far as our experience goes, the White-head is to be looked for only in the pine timber which clothes the eastern slopes of the Cascades and their outliers. The range of the species extends casually northward into British Columbia, but the southern boundary of Oregon is nearer its center of distribution, and the birds decrease rapidly in numbers north of the Peshastin Range in Washington.

At first glance we would say that this bird eschews protective coloration altogether, but Mrs. Bailey argues that even black and white are not very conspicuous colors under our interior sun, and claims that the bird gains inattention from its very unbirdlikeness. Dr. Merrill, who made a most satisfactory study of this species near Fort Klamath in Oregon, regards the bird in winter as the very simulacrum of a broken branch strongly shadowed, and crowned with snow.

Concerning its food habits, Dr. Merrill says[71]; “I have rarely heard the Woodpecker hammer, and even tapping is rather uncommon. So far as I have observed, and during the winter I watched it carefully, its principal supply of food is obtained in the bark, most of the pines having a very rough bark, scaly and deeply fissured. The bird uses its bill as a crowbar, rather than as a hammer or chisel, prying off the successive scales and layers of bark in a very characteristic way. This explains the fact of its being such a quiet worker, and, as would be expected, it is most often seen near the base of the tree, where the bark is thickest and roughest. It must destroy immense numbers of _Scolytidæ_, whose larvæ tunnel the bark so extensively, and of other insects that crawl beneath the scales of bark for shelter during winter. I have several times imitated the work of this bird by prying off the successive layers of bark, and have been astonished at the great number of insects, and especially of spiders, so exposed. As a result of this, and of its habit of so searching for food, the White-headed Woodpeckers killed here were loaded with fat to a degree I have never seen equalled in any land bird, and scarcely surpassed by some Sandpipers in autumn.”

The White-headed Woodpecker is a quiet bird in manner and voice. I have never heard it utter a sound even in the presence of a nest robber but it is said to have “a sharp, clear ‘_witt-witt’_” which it uses after the fashion of the Harris Woodpecker, when it flies from tree to tree. The bird is quite wary; but when it cherishes suspicions, it flies away composedly, with no such air of ostentatious offense as Harris indulges on occasion.

The first nest reported from this State was found on July 22nd, 1896, in the valley of the Methow, where this Woodpecker is not at all common. The entrance showed like a clean-cut augur hole, one and five-eighths inches in diameter, driven in a live pine; and was reached conveniently from horseback. Four fresh eggs lay on a bed of chips, some eight inches down, and they were remarkable only for a somewhat uniform distribution of sparse, black spots,—probably dots of adherent pitch, derived from the chips, and soiled to blackness by contact with the sitting bird.

No. 169.
ARCTIC THREE-TOED WOODPECKER.

A. O. U. No. 400. Picoides arcticus Swains.

Synonym.—Black-backed Three-toed Woodpecker.

Description.—_Adult male_: Upperparts glossy blue-black, duller on
flight feathers; primaries and outer secondaries with paired spots of
white on edges of outer and inner webs; a squarish crown-patch of
yellow (cadmium orange); a small post-ocular spot of white, a
transverse white cheek-stripe meeting fellow on forehead and cut off
by black malar stripe from white of throat and remaining underparts;
sides heavily barred or mingled with blue-black. Bill and feet
plumbeous black; iris brown. _Adult female_: Like male, without yellow
crown-patch. Length 9.00-10.25 (228.6-260.4); wing 5.25 (133.3); tail
3.50-4.00 (88.9-101.6); bill 1.25 (31.7).

Recognition Marks.—Chewink to Robin size; yellow crown-patch of male;
back without white as compared with _P. americanus fasciatus_; and
black of head continuous with that of back as compared with the
_Dryobates villosus_ group.

Nesting.—Not known to breed in Washington, but probably does so.
_Nest_: hole in pine or fir stub, 10-18 inches deep. _Eggs_: 4-6,
white, moderately glossed. Av. size, .96 × .72 (24.4 × 18.3).
_Season_: last week in May, June; one brood.

General Range.—Northern North America from the Arctic regions south to
northern tier of states, and in the Sierra Nevada to Lake Tahoe, south
in New England and in Alleghany Mountains in winter, but breeding
thruout western range.

Range in Washington.—Rare resident in coniferous forests of the
central Cascades.

Authorities.—[“Black-backed three-toed woodpecker,” Johnson, Rep. Gov.
W. T. 1884 (1885), 22.] Bendire. Life Hist. N. A. Birds, Vol. II.
1895, p. 74. E.

Specimens.—U. of W. Prov. C. E.

The Black-backed Woodpecker should occur in all our mountains, and especially upon the pine-timbered slopes of the eastern Cascades and in the Blue Mountains. It must, however, be considered rather rare, for we have never met with it afield, and have records of only two specimens, one taken at Glacier and the other near Lake Kichelas. The species is practically non-migratory and should breed wherever it occurs. It is ordinarily a very quiet bird, devoting itself assiduously to its search for tree-boring insects and their larvæ, chiefly _Buprestidæ_ and _Cerambycidæ_; and at other than breeding seasons appears stolidly to ignore the presence of strangers. Its note is described as a sharp, shrill “_chirk, chirk_”; and it is besides a most persistent drummer, rattling away at a single station for minutes at a time, so that the ornithologist who is suspicious may follow the lead from a half mile’s distance.

Nesting is chiefly at moderate heights—from two and a half to eight feet from the ground, Bendire says; so that there ought not to be any difficulty in studying this species once it is found.

No. 170.
ALASKAN THREE-TOED WOODPECKER.

A. O. U. No. 401 a. Picoides americanus fasciatus Baird.

Synonym.—Ladder-backed Three-toed Woodpecker.

Description.—_Adult male_: Upperparts chiefly black, the back strongly
barred with white, these bars more or less confluent centrally;
flight-feathers marked with paired white spots, and wing-coverts
sometimes more or less spotted with white; two central pairs of
tail-feathers black, the next succeeding pair black mingled with
white, and the remaining pairs pure white; a squarish yellow patch on
crown; a distinct white post-ocular stripe extending to nape; a broad
white stripe from lore to side of neck; underparts white, the sides
and flanks heavily but narrowly barred with black. Bill and feet
plumbeous black; iris brown. _Adult female_: Similar but without
yellow crown patch; sometimes largely white on crown. Length of adult:
8.00-9.50 (203.2-241.3); wing 4.60 (116.8); tail 3.60 (91.4); bill
1.20 (30.5).

Recognition Marks.—Chewink to Robin size; lustrous black above with
central white in broad _bars_; sides black-and-white barred.

Nesting.—_Nest_: In hole at various heights. _Eggs_: usually 4, white.
Av. size, .92 × .70 (23.4 × 17.8). _Season_: June; one brood.

General Range.—Timbered mountains of northern Washington, British
Columbia and Alaska.

Range in Washington.—Sparingly resident in northern Cascades.

Authorities.—Brewster, Auk, X. July, 1893, pp. 236, 237.

Specimens.—Prov. C.

This is a permanent resident of the Hudsonian zone on the Mt. Baker range both north and south of the international boundary; also at lower elevations on Vancouver Island and on Salt Springs Island, Gulf of Georgia. Further in the interior it is of irregular distribution, being in some districts replaced by _Picoides arcticus_, and in others occupying the same localities as that species. I have no records for _arcticus_ west of the Cascade range. At one time I was convinced that the Alaskan Three-toed Woodpecker occupied a higher breeding zone than the Black-backed species (_arcticus_), but had to modify this opinion on finding a pair of _fasciatus_ breeding in the low hills back of Clinton, where one would hardly expect to find any three-toed woodpecker. Usually the species is found in the gloomy forests of balsam, spruce, and hemlock, and up to timber line. Here it is a silent bird, its tapping being usually the only sign of its presence.

The cry is a sharp cluck without the insistent ring of its allies of the _Dyrobates_ group. In spring the usual chattering cry, common to so many woodpeckers, is heard, but this is more subdued and guttural than that of the Hairy Woodpecker. The males will also hang for hours on some dead spire beating the regular rattling tattoo of all true woodpeckers.

When shot, even if instantly killed, three-toed woodpeckers of both species have a marvelous faculty of remaining clinging to the tree in death. Where the trunks are draped with _Usnea_ moss, it is impossible to bring one down, except when winged—then they attempt to fly, and fall to earth; but when killed outright they remain securely fastened by their strong curved claws. Repeated shots fail to dislodge them, and it is no joke to drop a big tree with a camp axe, as I have done, only to find at the finish that you cannot discover the object of your quest in the tangle of broken branches and dense rhododendron scrub. The only chance is to leave the bird and to visit the foot of the tree when the relaxing muscles have at length permitted the body to drop—usually within two days. Once I was fortunate enough to observe the exact position that enabled the bird to maintain its grip. I had shot and killed an Arctic Three-toed Woodpecker on a low stump. On going up I found the bird’s feet to be three inches apart by measurement; the tail was firmly braced, and the further the body was tilted back the more firmly the claws held in the bark.

Allan Brooks.

No. 171.
RED-NAPED SAPSUCKER.

A. O. U. No. 402 a. Sphyrapicus varius nuchalis Baird.

Description.—_Adult male_: Pileum, throat, and nuchal band carmine (or
poppy-red to crimson); crown and throat patches defined by black,
narrowly on sides, broadly behind, the black border of throat below
forming a conspicuous crescentic chest-band; a white streak over and
behind eye, more or less continuous with black-and-white mottling of
upper-back; a transverse stripe from nostril around throat and chest,
and continuous with white of underparts; remaining upperparts black,
variously spotted, banded, and blotched with white; middle coverts and
upper tail-coverts nearly pure white, the first-named forming with the
exposed edges of the greater coverts a broad white wing-band;
underparts centrally pure white or flushed with sulphur-yellow; sides,
flanks, and under tail-coverts heavily barred, or marked chiefly in
hastate pattern, with black. Bill and feet slaty black; iris brown.
_Adult female_: Like male but carmine nuchal patch reduced or wanting;
throat-patch reduced by white of chin. In _young birds_ the areas of
red are much reduced (wanting except on crown?) the throat being
clouded with dusky instead. Length about 8.50 (215.9); wing 5.00
(127); tail 3.20 (81.3); bill 1.00 (25.4).

Recognition Marks.—Chewink size; highly variegated black, white, and
red (and sometimes tinged with yellow below); red throat-patch defined
by black (or white above in female) distinctive.

Nesting.—_Nest_: A gourd-shaped excavation in decaying wood of live
aspen tree, 5 to 30 feet up; entrance 1½ inches wide; hole 8-10 inches
deep; no lining. _Eggs_: 3-6, white, moderately glossed, ovate to
elliptical ovate. Av. size, .90 × .67 (22.9 × 17). _Season_: June
1-15; one brood.

General Range.—Rocky Mountain and adjacent ranges from Arizona and New
Mexico north to about Lat. 54° in Alberta and British Columbia; west
to eastern slopes of Cascade Mountains in Washington and Oregon and to
the Sierra Nevada; in winter south to Lower California and Mexico;
casual in Kansas.

Range in Washington.—In general, in the hilly country of the
northeastern part of the State and in the Blue Mountains; commonly
along river bottoms in Stevens County; rare or casual on eastern
slopes of the Cascades.

Authorities.—Bendire, Auk, Vol. V. July, 1888, 226. Sr¹. J.

Specimens.—Prov. C.

The western variety of the Yellow-bellied Sapsucker differs only slightly from the eastern bird in appearance, and not at all in disposition. Of _varius_ I have already said[72]:

Before the maple sap has ceased running, our woods are invaded from the south by a small army of hungry Sapsuckers. The birds are rather unsuspicious, quiet, and sluggish in their movements. Their common note is a drawling and petulant _kee-a_, like that of a distant Hawk; but they use it rather to vent their feelings than to call their fellows, for altho there may be twenty in a given grove, they are only chance associates and have no dealings one with another. Starting near the bottom of a tree, one goes hitching his way up the trunk, turns a lazy back-somersault to reinspect some neglected crevice, or leaps out into the air to capture a passing insect. The bulk of this bird’s food, however, at least during the migration, is secured at the expense of the tree itself. The rough exterior bark layer, or cortex of, say, a maple, is stripped off, and then the bird drills a transverse series of oval or roughly rectangular holes through which the sap is soon flowing. The inner bark is eaten as removed and the sap is eagerly drunk. It is said also that in some cases the bird relies upon this sugar-bush to attract insects which it likes, and thus makes its little wells do triple service. According to Professor Butler, an observer in Indiana, Mrs. J. L. Hine, once watched a Sapsucker in early spring for seven hours at a stretch, and during this time the bird did not move above a yard from a certain maple tap from which it drank at intervals.

Orchard trees suffer occasionally from this bird’s depredations, but the sap of pine or fir trees is its favorite diet and available the year around.

In nesting the Red-naped Sapsucker shows a marked preference for aspen trees and its summer range is practically confined to their vicinity. A nest found on the banks of the Pend d’Oreille, opposite Ione, was placed twenty-five feet up in an aspen tree some sixteen inches in diameter. The tree was dead at the heart but there was an outer shell of live wood two inches in thickness. The bird had penetrated this outer shell with a tunnel as round as an augur-hole, and an inch and a half in diameter, and had excavated in the soft heart-wood a chamber ten inches deep vertically, five and a half horizontally, and three from front to back. Here five eggs, “as fresh as paint,” reposed on the rotten chips. Like all, or most, Woodpecker eggs, these were beautifully transparent, with the position of the contained yolk clearly indicated. One egg was broken with a small round hole, as tho a careless claw had been stuck into it.

The parent birds, especially the male, who was caught on the eggs as tho inspecting the latest achievement, were very attentive, flying back and forth in neighboring trees, and giving utterance to the _keé ah_ and other notes. After my descent from the ruined home, the male alighted beside the hole and tapped at the edges, as tho seeking in the sound of the wood explanation of the disaster.

No. 172.
RED-BREASTED SAPSUCKER.

A. O. U. No. 403. Sphyrapicus ruber (Gmel.).

Synonym.—Red-breasted Woodpecker.

Description.—_Adult male_: Somewhat as in preceding but distinctive
markings of head and neck and chest nearly obliterated by
all-prevailing carmine which reaches well down on breast; marks
alluded to most persistent in anterior portion of transverse (white)
cheek-stripe and in black of lores; breast (posterior to carmine) and
remaining underparts strongly suffused with yellow; white spotting of
upperparts greatly reduced in area and oftenest tinged with yellow;
white wing-bar fully persistent but often yellow-tinged—thus an
evolved form of _S. v. nuchalis_, with which males are said to exhibit
every degree of gradation. _Adult_ _female_: like male but duller.
_Young birds_ are said to be “gray with dull reddish suffusion as if
the head had been dipped in claret wine.” Length, etc., as in
preceding.

Recognition Marks.—Chewink size; bright crimson of head, “shoulders”
and fore-breast distinctive; yellow underparts. Brighter than
succeeding.

Nesting.—_Nest_ and _Eggs_ as in _S. r. notkensis_.

General Range.—Northern Lower California, the Pacific Coast States and
British Columbia, save in northwestern portion where displaced by
succeeding form; retires from northern portion of range in winter.

Range in Washington.—Summer resident and migrant chiefly along the
eastern slopes of the Cascades, shading into succeeding form west of
the divide.

Authorities.—[Lewis and Clark, Hist. Ex. (1814) Ed. Biddle: Coues,
Vol. II. p. 185.] Bendire, Auk, Vol. V. July, 1888, p. 230. T. D¹.

Specimens.—U. of W.

It is all very well for the economic ornithologist to tell us that Sapsuckers are somewhat injurious to orchard trees, but the sight of one of these splendid creatures, dropping with a low cry to the base of a tree and hitching coquettishly up its length, is enough to disarm all resentment. From what spilled chalice of old Burgundy has the bird been sipping? Or from what baptism of blood has he lately escaped that he should be dyed red for half his length? Recrudescent mythology, ill at ease in these commercial times, nevertheless casts furtive glances at him, and longs to account in its inimitable way for the telltale color.

For myself, if young fruit trees will lure such beauty from the woods, I will turn orchardist. Nor will I begrudge the early sap from my choicest pippins. I am fond of cider myself, but there are worthier. Drink, pretty creature, drink!

Well, of course, there are biographical details; but what of it? Have you not yourself been so smitten with beauty that you forgot to inquire pedigree? Tut, now; you do not even remember a single sentence she said that day. But you remember her. Enough!

Once when the bird-man was camping on the Snoqualmie trail, this crimson vision appeared at the edge of a clearing, and proceeded to inspect our plant approvingly; and while the bird-man’s heart was in his mouth, it lit on the tent-post and gave it two or three inquiring raps. What need of details!

No. 173.
NORTHWEST SAPSUCKER.

A. O. U. No. 403 a. Sphyrapicus ruber notkensis Suckow.

Synonyms.—Northern Red-breasted Sapsucker. Crimson-headed Woodpecker.

Description.—Like preceding but darker, red a deep crimson or maroon
purple. Original markings of _S. varius nuchalis_ still further
effaced. Av. measurements of two adults from Glacier: Length, 9.94
(252.5); wing 5.24 (133.1); tail 3.40 (86.4); bill 1.03 (26.2).

Recognition Marks.—Chewink size; dark crimson of head, neck, and
breast distinctive.

Nesting.—_Nest_: An unlined cavity excavated in dead fir or living
deciduous tree, usually at considerable height. _Eggs_: 5-7, white.
Av. size, .92 × .69 (23.4 × 17.5). _Season_: May or June; one brood.

General Range.—Breeding in Northwest coast district of North America
from Oregon to Sitka, Alaska; south in winter to southern California.

Range in Washington.—Summer resident west of the Cascades; also
partially resident in winter.

Authorities.—_Sphyrapicus ruber_ Baird, Baird, Rep. Pac. R. R. Surv.
IX. 1858, pp. 104, 105. C&S. Rh. Ra. B. E.

Specimens.—P. Prov. B. E.

Victor Savings, of Blaine, pointed out a hole fifty feet up in a big fir stub as the Sapsucker’s nest. Soon the female flew to the entrance; whereupon the male bird emerged, gorgeous in crimson panoply, and flew away, the female taking his place on the eggs. After a bit Victor pounded on the tree to raise a possible Harris further up, for the tree above is riddled with nesting holes. The female Sapsucker promptly thrust out her head and studied the situation for five minutes or so, after which she dropped back content. The only notable thing about the nest externally was a round smooth patch, the size of a dollar, upon the tree about four inches below the nest, worn and polished by the tail-feathers of the alighting birds. Judged by this mark of identification, only one of the unused holes above belonged to the Sapsucker; the remainder to the Harris Woodpecker.

The stub commands a view of the Savings’s orchard, where, Victor says, the Sapsuckers do immense damage, especially to the pear trees. This nesting tree was sixteen feet around at the base, above the root bulge, and perfectly desolate of limbs. Fortunately, also, it had long since disposed of its shaggy coat of bark,—fortunately, I say, for when a fir stub sheds its fir coat it does so suddenly, and great is the fall thereof.

It was a far cry up that barren shaft with one knew not what possibilities of defeat at the end of it; but, of course, if one wanted eggs, one had to go after them. First, we laid out a liberal supply of stout two-foot fir cleats, and a couple of pounds of small spikes. A ladder gave us a twenty-foot start, after which I nailed up the cleats with the aid of a three-quarter-inch rope passed round the tree and my body. My companion at the bottom of the tree supplied building materials which I hoisted from time to time by means of another rope.

In this laborious fashion the nest was reached. The birds, meanwhile, having become increasingly anxious, made frequent approaches from a neighboring tree, crying, _kee-a, kee-aa_, in helpless bewilderment. Several times they lighted near the scene of operations, but were frightened off by the resounding blows of the hand-axe. When all was over, they raised a high, strong _qué-oo,—qué-oo_, never before heard, and reminding one generically of the Red-headed Woodpecker of boyhood days.

By the time I had a hole large enough to thrust in the hand, the eggs were quite buried in chips and rotten wood. But when they were uncovered, they were seen to lie, seven of them, in two regular lines, four in the front rank with sides touching evenly, and three in the rear with points dove-tailed between. There was, of course, no lining for the nest, save the rotten wood itself. The eggs were perfectly fresh and had a warm pink tint before the contents were removed. Their surface is highly polished, and their texture varied, giving an effect as of water-marked linen paper, in heavy branching lines and coarse frost-work patterns.

No. 174.
WILLIAMSON’S SAPSUCKER.

A. O. U. No. 404. Sphyrapicus thyroideus (Cass.).

Synonyms.—Williamson’s Woodpecker. Red-throated Woodpecker (male).
Brown-headed Woodpecker (female). Black-breasted Woodpecker (female).

Description.—_Adult male_: In general glossy black including wings and
tail; throat, narrowly, scarlet; belly gamboge yellow; sides, flanks,
lining of wings and under tail-coverts more or less mingled with
white,—black-and-white barred, or marked with black on white ground; a
broad oblique bar on wing-coverts and small more or less paired spots
on wing-quills and upper tail-coverts, white; a white post-ocular
stripe and a transverse stripe from extreme forehead passing below eye
to side of neck. Bill slaty; feet greenish gray with black nails; iris
dark brown. _Adult female_: Very different; in general, closely barred
black-and-white, or black-and-brownish; breast only pure black, in
variable extent; whole head nearly uniform hair-brown, but showing
traces of irrupting black; post-ocular stripe of male faintly
indicated and occasionally with touch of red on throat; some
intermediate rectrices black but exposed surfaces of central and outer
tail-feathers black-and-white barred; white spots of wing-quills
larger, paired, and changing to bars on inner quills. _Young male_:
Like adult male, but black not glossy; belly paler; throat white.
_Young female_: Like adult female but barring carried across head,
neck, throat, and breast. Length of adult: 9.00-9.75 (228.6-247.6);
wing 5.25 (133.3); tail 3.80 (96.5); bill .90-1.15 (22.9-29.2).

Recognition Marks.—Small Robin size; fine barring of female
distinctive; extensive black of male with white head-stripes, white
rump (upper tail-coverts) and white wing-bar; pattern of underparts
(in male) clearly a modification of that of _S. v. nuchalis_, but red
of throat much reduced, and black much extended.

Nesting.—_Nest_: A hole excavated by birds at any height in live
deciduous tree or dead conifer. _Eggs_: 3-7, usually 4, white. Av.
size, .96 × .67 (24.4 × 17). _Season_: May-June; one brood.

General Range.—Western United States chiefly in mountains and
foothills from eastern slopes of the Rocky Mountains to western slopes
of Sierra-Cascades, breeding from mountains of Arizona and New Mexico
north to British Columbia (in the valley of the Okanagan); south in
winter to Southwestern States and Mexico.

Range in Washington.—Summer resident chiefly on eastern slopes of the
Cascades.

Authorities.—Bendire, Life Hist. N. A. Birds, Vol. II. 1895, p. 97.
D².

Specimens.—C.

Over and beyond the interest of _life_, which is always the greatest charm of an animal, be it bird or snail, a curious interest attaches to many creatures thru some accident of discovery, some misapprehension, or neglect, or absurd surprise,—the historical interest, humanly considered. Now the amusing thing about Williamson Sapsuckers, male and female, is that ages after God had joined them together man snatched them rudely asunder, thrusting Mr. Williamson into one pigeon-hole, labeled _williamsonii_, and Mrs. Williamson—under a vernacular alias of Brown-headed Woodpecker—since she was indiscreet enough to flit out alone one day, into another, labeled _Picus thyroideus_. This legal crime, which was committed in the probate court of ornithological inexperience in 1853 and 1857, was not corrected until 1873, when Mr. Henshaw caught a pair of these really very dissimilar birds innocently conspiring to set the decree of a blundering divorce court at naught.

Of the occurrence of this species in Washington, there is little to be said. There is a record for British Columbia, Similikameen, June, 1882, by R. V. Griffin, whence Bendire evidently assumes its presence along the eastern slope of the Cascade Mountains in Washington. I am aware of only one published instance[73], recording a female narrowly observed by myself at the Yakima Soda Springs, on August 9, 1899. Besides that we have obtained momentary glimpses of others in the Stehekin Valley in three successive seasons, 1906-1908.

Bendire notes that these Sapsuckers are like the other species in habit, except that they are not at all confined to deciduous trees, and that they are found (in Oregon, California, and Colorado) at the higher levels, from 5000 feet up. So far, we have found them in Washington only at altitudes of 1000 to 1500 feet.

No. 175.
NORTHERN PILEATED WOODPECKER.

A. O. U. No. 405 a. Phlœotomus pileatus abieticola (Bangs).

Synonyms.—Logcock. Cock-of-the-Woods. Black Woodcock.

Description.—_Adult male_: General plumage sooty black, lusterless
save on wings and back; whole top of head and lengthened crest bright
red; red malar stripes changing to black behind, and separating white
spaces; chin and upper throat white; also a white stripe extending
from nostrils and below eye to nape, and produced downward and
backward to shoulder; narrow white stripe over and behind eye; lining
and edge of wing, and a large spot (nearly concealed) at base of
primaries, white; black feathers of sides sparingly white-tipped; bill
dark plumbeous above, lighter below, save at tip; feet black. In some
specimens the whites are everywhere tinged with pale sulphur-yellow,
the color being especially noticeable in the axillaries and lining of
wings. _Adult female_: Similar, but black on forehead, and black
instead of red malar stripes. Length 15.50-19.00 (393.7-482.6); wing
8.50-10.00 (215.9-254); tail 5.85-7.40 (148.6-188); head 4.50-5.50
(114.3-139.7); bill 1.75-2.65 (44.5-67.3).

Recognition Marks.—Largest size; black, white and red on head in
stripes; body mainly black.

Nesting.—_Nest_: high in dead trees. _Eggs_: 4-6, white. Av. size,
1.29 × .94 (32.8 × 23.9). _Season_: May; one brood.

General Range.—Formerly the heavily wooded regions of North America
south of about latitude 63°, except in the southern Rocky Mountains.
Now rare or extirpated in the more settled parts of the Eastern
States.

Range in Washington.—Not uncommon resident in larger coniferous
forests thruout the State.

Authorities.—[Lewis and Clark, Hist. Ex. (1814) Ed. Biddle: Coues,
Vol. II. p. 185.] _Hylatomus pileatus_ Baird, Baird, Rep. Pac. R. R.
Surv. IX. 1858, p. 107. T. C&S. L². Rh. D¹. Ra. Kk. B. E.

Specimens.—U. of W. P. Prov. B. BN.

One’s first acquaintance with this huge black fowl marks a red-letter day in woodcraft, and it is permitted the serious student to examine the bird anatomically just once in a life-time. The scarlet crest attracts first attention, not only because of its brilliancy, but because its presence counterbalances the bill, and imparts to the head its hammer-like aspect. This crest was much sought after by the Indians of our coast, and figured prominently as a personal decoration in their medicine dances, as did the bird itself in their medicine lore. A measurement of twenty-eight inches from wing-tip to wing-tip marks the size of this “Black Woodcock,” while the stiffened tail-feathers with their down-turned vanes show what adequate support is given the clinging claws when the bird delivers one of its powerful strokes. The bill is the marvel. Made apparently of horn, like other birds’ bills, it has some of the attributes of tempered steel. The bird uses it recklessly as both axe and crowbar, for it hews its way thru the bark of our largest dead fir trees, in its efforts to get at the grubs, which have their greatest field of activity between the bark and the wood. It pries off great chips and flakes by a sidewise wrench of its head. A carpenter is known by his chips, but no carpenter would put his chisels to such hard service as the bird does his. As a result there is no mistaking the bark pile which surrounds the base of certain old stubs in the forest for the work of any other agency.

Possibly the most interesting of all is the Log-cock’s tongue, which it is able to protrude suddenly to a distance of four or five inches beyond the tip of its beak. This provision enables the bird to economize labor in the tracking of buried sweets, and the arrangement is made possible by the great development of the hyoid bones with their muscular attachments. These extend backward from the base of the tongue over and around the skull, nearly to the upper base of the bird’s bill again.

The great forest fires which have ravaged our State have proved a god-send to the Woodpeckers, altho they are in no way responsible for them. The Pileated Woodpecker does his share in staying the ravages of the wood-working insects, but he is even more interested in the spoliation of fallen logs and so hastens rather than retards decay. A pair of these Woodpeckers will gradually tear a rotten log to pieces in pursuit of the grubs and wood-boring ants which it harbors. They are shy or confiding just in proportion to the amount of persecution which they have been called upon to endure. I have waited half a day trying to get a specimen, and again I have sat under a shower of chips or ogled a busy pair in the open at forty feet.

The Log-cock has a variety of notes, and one who learns them will find the bird much more common than he may have supposed. The most noteworthy of these is a high-pitched stentorian call, which is not exactly laughter, altho something like it in form, _hü ha ha ha ha ha ha ha hü_. “At a distance this call sounds metallic; but when at close range it is sent echoing thru the forest, it is full and clear, and it is the most untamably wild sound among bird notes.”

In this connection wish to mention a mysterious sound which I have several times heard in the depths of the western forest, but to whose authorship I have no clew unless it proceeds from this bird. The note comes from well up in the trees, and is repeated slowly, after little intervals, and with a sort of funereal solemnity. If I venture to literate it, the letters are to be thought rather than said,—or better still, thought while whistled in a low key _(si) poolk(ng) - - - (si)poolk(ng) - - (si)poolk(ng)_. Who will “riddle me this mystery”?

The Pileated Woodpecker chisels out its nesting hole at any height in dead timber, whether of fir, pine, spruce, or other. It nests regularly in this State, but the taking of its eggs is something of a feat; so, in default of much-coveted “luck,” we fall back on Bendire[74]: “From three to five eggs are usually laid to a set, but I have seen it stated that the Pileated Woodpecker often laid six, and that a nest found near Farmville, Virginia, contained eight. An egg is deposited daily, and incubation begins occasionally before the set is completed, and lasts about eighteen days, both sexes assisting in the duty, as well as in caring for the young. Like all Woodpeckers the Pileated are very devoted parents, and the young follow them for some weeks after leaving the nest, until fully capable of caring for themselves. Only one brood is raised in a season. The eggs of the Pileated Woodpecker are pure china-white in color, mostly ovate in shape; the shell is exceedingly fine-grained and very glossy, as if enameled.”

No. 176.
LEWIS’S WOODPECKER.

A. O. U. No. 408. Asyndesmus lewisi Riley.

Synonym.—Black Woodpecker.

Description.—_Adults_: Above shining black with a greenish bronzy
luster; “face,” including extreme forehead, space about eye, cheeks,
and chin, rich crimson; a collar around neck continuous with breast
hoary ash; this ashy mingled intimately with carmine, or carmine-lake,
on remaining underparts, save flanks, thighs and crissum, which are
black; feathers of nape and underparts black and compact at base but
finely dissected on colored portion of tips, each barb lengthened and
bristly in character. Bill and feet black; iris brown. _Young birds_
lack the crimson mask and hoary collar; the underparts are gray
mingled with dusky below, with skirtings of red in increasing
abundance according to age. Length of adult: 10.00-11.00 (254-279.4);
wing 6.75 (171.5); tail 4.50 (114.3); bill 1.20 (30.5).

Recognition Marks.—Robin size; shining black above, hoary collar and
breast; red mingled with hoary ash on underparts distinctive.

Nesting.—_Nest_: in hole excavated in dead tree, usually at
considerable height. _Eggs_: 5-9, white, slightly glossed. Av. size,
1.03 × .80 (26.2 × 20.3). _Season_: third week in May to first week in
June; one brood.

General Range.—Western United States from the Black Hills and the
Rocky Mountains to the Pacific, and from southern British Columbia to
southern Alberta, south to Arizona, and (in winter) western Texas.
Casual in Kansas (A. O. U.).

Range in Washington.—Summer resident in timbered sections (Arid
Transition and lower Canadian life-zones) east of the Cascades;
especially partial to cottonwood timber lining the larger streams;
locally distributed or colonizing west of the mountains, chiefly in
burns.

Authorities.—[Lewis and Clark, Hist. Ex. (1814), Ed. Biddle; Coues,
Vol. II., p. 187]. _Melanerpes torquatus_, Bonap. Baird, Rep. Pac. R.
R. Surv. IX., 1858, p. 116. T. C&S. L². D¹. Kb. Ra. D². Ss¹. Ss². Kk.
J. B. E.

Specimens.—U. of W. P. Prov. C. E.

Not the least strange of the many new creatures discovered by a famous expedition of a hundred years ago was this curious black Woodpecker, which Wilson named _torquatus_ (collared), but which soon became known by the name of the intrepid leader, Captain Meriwether Lewis. In habit and appearance the bird combines Crow, Jay, Woodpecker, Flicker, and Flycatcher. It is perhaps as flycatcher that we know him best, as we see him sail out from the summit of a cottonwood or towering pine-tree and make connection with some object to us invisible. If the insects are flying freely, the bird may conclude to remain aloft for a few minutes, fluttering about in great watchful circles, ready for momentary dashes and adroit seizures. A dozen of his fellows may be similarly engaged in the same vicinity, for Lewis is ever a sociable bird, and when he returns to his perch he will raise a curious raucous twitter, a rasping, grating, obstructed sound, which is his best effort at either conversation or song.

In passing from tree to tree the Woodpecker presents a Crow-like appearance, for it moves with a labored, direct flight, which is quite different from the bounding gait so characteristic of many of its real kinfolk. In alighting, also, the bird is as likely to bring up on top of a limb, in respectable bird-fashion, as to try clinging to the tree trunk.

Lewis Woodpeckers are rather wary, and if one starts out to secure a specimen, he is surprised to note how the birds manage to edge off while still out of range, and to fly away across the tree-tops rather than trust themselves to the lower levels. It is well worth one’s while to examine a specimen, because of the exceptional character of the bird’s plumage. The hoary ash of the collar contrasts strikingly with the glossy green of the upperparts, while the rich crimson, mingled with ashy, below, serves to emphasize the extraordinary hair-like character of the feathers themselves. If it had been a Sapsucker, now, or a Harris, we could readily understand how the abdominal plumage might have been teased to rags thru constant friction with rough bark; but this lazy Jack-of-all-trades, who is more flycatcher than true woodpecker, how did he get his under-plumage so fearfully mussed?

For all the Black Woodpecker keeps largely to the tops of trees, it is not averse to ground-meats, and where unmolested, will descend to feed with Cousin Flicker upon crickets, geotic beetles, or fallen acorns. Grasshoppers are a favorite food, and during the season of their greatest abundance the bird requires little else. Service-berries are a staple in season, wild strawberries are not often neglected, and the bird has been known to filch a cherry now and then. Indeed, it is noteworthy that in certain fruit-growing sections, such as the Yakima Valley, Black Woodpeckers have increased in numbers of late. It must not be hastily concluded on this account that the Woodpecker is a menace to the orchard. He earns what he eats. Orchards attract insects, and insects attract birds. Which will you have, no birds, more insects, and so, eventually, no fruit? or more birds, fewer insects, and enough fruit for all?

The occurrence of the Black Woodpecker west of the Cascades is subject to little-understood fluctuations. One year the birds will abound in a certain section, while the year following none are seen. Whether this is because the local food supply has become exhausted with a season’s foraging, or whether the birds are simply whimsical in choice, we do not know. Doubtless, in any event, the rapid opening up of new territory, thru the cutting and partial burning of timber, has provided a field of opportunity too large for the species to fully occupy. With such wealth before them the early colonists may naturally have become a little saucy.

No. 177.
YELLOW-SHAFTED FLICKER.

A. O. U. No. 412a. _Colaptes auratus luteus_ Bangs.

Synonyms.—Flicker. Northern Flicker. Golden-winged Woodpecker.
Yellow-hammer. High-hole. High-holder. Pigeon Woodpecker. Wake-up.

Description.—_Adult male_: Top of head and cervix ashy gray, with a
vinaceous tinge on forehead; a bright scarlet band on the back of the
neck; back, scapulars, and wings vinaceous gray with conspicuous black
bars, brace-shaped, crescentic or various; primaries plain dusky on
exposed webs; lining of the wing and shafts of the wing-quills yellow;
rump broadly white; upper tail-coverts white, black-barred in broad,
“herring-bone” pattern; tail double-pointed, black, and with black
shafts on exposed upper surface; feathers sharply acuminate; tail
below, golden-yellow and with yellow shafts, save on black tips; chin,
sides of head, and throat vinaceous, enclosing two broad, black, malar
stripes, or moustaches; a broad, black, pectoral crescent; remaining
underparts white with heavy vinaceous shading on breast and sides,
everywhere marked with sharply defined and handsome round, or cordate,
spots of black. Bill and feet dark plumbeous. _Adult female_: Similar,
but without black moustache. Sexes about equal in size. Length
12.00-12.75 (304.8-323.9); av. of thirteen specimens: wing 6.13
(155.7); tail 4.34 (110.2); bill 1.34 (34).

Recognition Marks.—Size not comparable to that of any better known
bird; scarlet nuchal band; _yellow_ “flickerings” in flight; pectoral
crescent; white rump; black-spotted breast, etc.

Nesting.—Does not breed in Washington. _Nest_: an excavation in a tree
or stump, usually made by the bird, at moderate heights; unlined, save
by chips. _Eggs_: 4-10, usually 7 or 8, glossy white. Av. size, 1.09 ×
.85 (27.7 × 21.6).

General Range.—Northern and eastern North America, west to the eastern
slope of the Rocky Mountains and Alaska. Occasional on the Pacific
slope from California northward. Accidental in Europe.

Range in Washington.—Casual during migrations—a straggler from Alaska.

Authorities.—Dawson, Auk, Vol. XXV., Oct. 1908, p. 484.

Specimens.—Prov. E.

The true Yellow-shafted Flicker, the familiar bird of the Eastern States, is occasionally taken as a straggler during the fall migrations. Mr. D. E. Brown took a typical specimen at Glacier, in 1904, and Mr. Victor Savings, of Blaine, has shot one and seen several others. A specimen in Mr. Rathbun’s collection was taken by Mr. Matt. H. Gormley, on Orcas Island, October 15, 1903. The bird is a male and is typical save for the faintest possible tinge of salmon in the yellow, which marks him as a border-line specimen, probably a British Columbian bird which did not deflect eastward sufficiently in the autumn retreat.

According to Nelson, this bird is abundantly distributed thruout the timbered portions of Alaska, west even to the neighborhood of Bering Straits, and it is only surprising that so few of them come straight south to winter.

Upon the eastern borders of the range of _C. cafer_, viz., upon the eastern slopes of the Rocky Mountains in British Columbia, Idaho, Montana, and southward, specimens showing mixed characters of _cafer_ and _auratus_ are found—in such numbers, indeed, that they were formerly given a distinctive name, _Colaptes hybridus_ Baird. This half-breed stock is perhaps the most interesting example of hybridization in American ornithology, presenting, as it does, not the familiar border-line of types being differentiated by varying environment, but the re-amalgamation of related types, differentiated ages ago from a common stock, presumably in Mexico.

No. 178.
RED-SHAFTED FLICKER.

A. O. U. No. 413. Colaptes mexicanus collaris (Vigors).

Synonyms.—Red-winged Woodpecker. High-holder. “Yellow-hammer.” Pigeon
Woodpecker.

Description.—_Adult male_: Similar to _C. auratus luteus_, but yellow
of feather-shafts, etc., replaced by orange-vermillion; cast of upper
plumage correspondingly reddish (very faintly, a mere vinaceous tinge
to the brown); no scarlet nuchal patch; a broad malar stripe of
scarlet (replacing the black stripe of _C. a. luteus_); sides of head
and throat clear bluish ash; underparts tinged with lilaceous. _Adult
female_: Like male but scarlet malar stripe replaced by brown. Between
this and _Colaptes auratus luteus_ every form of gradation exists.
Hybrids (for such they really are) most frequently reveal themselves
by the presence of three scarlet patches (in the male), i. e., two
malar and one nuchal. Length: averaging larger than _C. a. luteus_, up
to 14.00 (355.6); wing 6.90 (175.3); tail 5.00 (127); bill 1.50
(38.1).

Recognition Marks.—Little Hawk size; brown finely barred with black
above; underparts heavily spotted with black; flame-color of under
wing surface prominent in flight; scarlet malar stripe of male
distinctive; lighter than succeeding.

Nesting.—Much as in _C. a. luteus_, and eggs indistinguishable. For
nesting sites makes use of wooden buildings or earth-banks in default
of trees. _Season_: May; one brood, rarely two.

General Range.—Western United States and British Columbia from the
Rocky Mountains to the Pacific and south into northern Mexico, giving
place to succeeding form on northwest coast slopes, to C. chrysoides
in extreme southwest, and hybridizing with _C. auratus luteus_ in
northeastern and northern portion of range.

Range in Washington.—East-side, common summer resident and migrant,
found to timber-line in the Cascades, where shading into next;
partially resident in winter.