Nov., 1915 FROM FIELD AND STUDY 235 Scaups, 17. A week later six young Ruddy Ducks were? seen, so at least two species are nesting in the park. The presence of the Scaups in considerable numbers and the late lingering of the Baldpates is of interest.--W. A. SqU?REs, Ban Francisco, Califo?n/?. Western Bluebird Nesting in Los Angeles.--Dr. Miller's notes on the Western Blue- bird (?ialia mexicana occidentalis) in a recent Co?oR recalls some old notes of my own. In 1892 a pair of this species persisted in trying to nest in a mail box on the cor- ner of Solano Avenue and Buena Vista Street (now called North Broadway), Los Ange- les. The birds considered the mail box a wholly suitable place, but the mail man and the owner objected. In spite of the resulting discouragements several eggs were laid before the Bluebirds gave up the site. I have forgotten the number laid, but I had one in my collection for several years and I am under the impression that they laid a com- plete set before abandoning the site.--W. LE; CHA?mERS, Eagle Rock, California. The Hermit Warbler in Berkeley,--The Hermit Warbler (Den?Iroica occilentalts) has been reported from Berkeley, California, but once, and that was thirty years ago, in 1885 (Belding, Land Birds of the Pacific District, 1890, p. 215). It may therefore be of interest to know that on May 10, 1915, I found one feeding with a flock of Townsend Warblers (Denclroica townsencli) in the oaks near our house in Strawberry Canyon. On May 11 a large flock made up'mainly of Townsend, Pileolated, and Yellow warblers sheltered several Hermit Warblers, and on May 12 the songs of the Townsend and Hermit warblers were heard more frequently even than that of the Pileolated Warbler, which was already nesting in Berkeley, though many others seemed to be in the migrat- ing flock. The last Townsend Warbler was heard on May 17. The month of May brought several other pleasant surprises, due, no doubt, to the continuous rains during the first part of the month. On May 11 the notes of a belated Robin reached me twice, and on Commencement Day (May 12) I was awakened in the early morning by the song of the Long-tailed Chat.--A?ELIA S. AL?,E?, Berkeley, Cali- fornia. ? Scaup Ducks Breeding in Golden Gate Park, San Francisco.--In the summer of 1914 Dr. Otto Westerfeld, of San Francisco, told me that he had come across a young brood of Scaup Ducks (Marila sp.?) while strolling along the border of one of the lakes in Golden Gate Park, and was much surprised to find this duck breeding there. Following up his report I made it a point to visit the park this season (1915) for the purpose of ascertaining if this species was breedling there again. While one or two ' adult Scaups were in sight at the time of my last visit, in July, there were no indica- ti6ns of their nesting, and upon questioning the man who has charge of feeding and looking after the ducks and geese in the park I was informed that no Scaups had bred there this year. But on that day I met an old friend--Mr. Stanley Forbes, a life mem- ber of the California Academy of Sciences,--who was practicing fly-casting at the club platform on Stow Lake, and mentioned to him my que st . He was interested in the duck question, and together we remarked upon the number of families of Mallards (Arias platyrhynchos) of all sizes, from a few days old to two-thirds grown, that were on the lake and even in sight as we were talking. Some weeks later I met Mr. Forbes on the street and he informed me thai only two or three days after our meeting in the park he was again practicing on the lake when two or three families of Scaup Ducks appeared, the ducklings being apparently bqt two
- or three days old. He stated that the youngsters did not seem to thrive, as many
lagged listlessly behind their mothers, and subsequent observations led him to believe that few, if any, survived for any length of time. Being absent from San Francisco for some weeks after the first meeting with Mr. Forbes above mentioned, I had no oppor- tunity to carry on personal observations; but I will say that this gentleman's word is to be relied upon as far as concerns the breeding of one of the two species of Scaups; yet, as he only knows them both as "Bluebills", he could not say which of the two it ?vas. However, as the breeding in this latitude and locality of either species is a rec- ord, I beg herewith to submit the case as it stands.--JossPa M?.?4?, Ban Francisco? California.
