MAR. I902. I THE CONDOR 39 of hours loitering among the mesquite clumps within half a mile of the plant. The old Hanlon ranch with its huge date palms loaded with ripening fruit, is located here. There are also some other fruits in their season. The Mexi- can in charge complained that the birds damaged his fruit and he constantly made pot shots among them. I saw half a dozen western gnat- catchers ( Poh'optila ccerulea obsct?ra) gleaning insects which had adhered to the sticky surface of the dates, It was here that I saw my first Gila woodpecker (,?ffelaneribes uroibyzialis ). He flew from these same palms to a stub sticking out of a mistletoe-covered mesquite. The mistletoe was white with berries and he may have been after these, but catching a glimpse of me, scarcely fifty feet away, he gave several decided jerks of his head and then flew back to the palms. About fifteen minutes later he came to the same spot and I had another good view of him. Other birds noted, and of which I secured specimens, were the verdin (,4uri?arus jqaviceibs) cactus wren, (Z[eleod. ytes brunneicaiMllus ) cow- bird, (Affolothrus ater) house finch, (Car- ?odacus mexicanus frontalis) sharp- shinned hawk, (,4ccipiter velox) and red sbaffed flicker; (Colaibtes ca/er col-' laris). Also. noted a flock of seven western bluebirds, (Si?lia mexicana occidentalis), white rumped shrikes, (Lanius ludovicianus excubitorides) and rock wrens, the latter about the gravel- covered slopes leading up from the river bottom to the main desert. I was pre- vented by serious illness from making a more extensive examination of this field, but I am convinced that that part of California which lies next to the Mexican boundary has much in store for ornithologists who may investigate it in the future. A Few Notes on the Nesting of Tr0chilus alexandri. R. C. WUESTE, T would be hard to find an individ- ual displaying no interest at the sight of a member of the family un- der discussion tonight. Or,ithologists and laity alike seem always imbued with enough of the vesthetic to grant these little gems a warm spot in their hearts. Personally, I will say at least, that I have found their acquaintance most fascinating. I have chosen the black-chinned hummingbird (T. alexandri) because of a greater experience with the species and also because I consider it the char- acteristic form of this locality; certainly it is the most abundan tnesting spec- ies I have observed here. Although I have met with this hummingbird forty miles inland, nearly all of the nests and eggs in my possession have been col- lected within two miles of the sea and practically at sea level. The small patches of willows which here and there dot dry, sandy water-courses are SAN DIEGO, CAL. shown perhaps a necessary partiality. However where cotton-woods and syca- mores are found, they are not despised. Two cases in which a weed stalk and a wild grapevine were used have even come under my notice. By the side of such willow patches, strips of wild to- bacco often run, and it is then that we have found an ideal nesting ground. Nest building commences during the latter half of April and during May nesting is in full swing. During this month their purpose to perpetuate their kind is deeply seated; in one case the domicile and contents of a pair were taken three consecutive times from the identical position; the fourth nest and eggs were allowed to remain in the possession of the ambitious though un- wise little mother. The nest is a dainty cup-shaped affair placed at heights varying from two to twenty feet. It is composed only of plant down and spider webs, with never a lichen or feather to
