On the night of December 16, 1898, my brother brought me an owl which he had caught in a tree near the house. The night was cold and foggy and the bird was apparently in an exhausted condition. To secure the owl, my brother made several jumps at the limb on which it sat before pulling it to the ground, where it sat stupefied and was placed in a box. The next morning it was dead, and upon skinning it I found the stomach empty and the bird in an emaciated condition. Sex, female; length, 19½ inches; extent 8 or 8½ inches. The bird proved to be a Saw-Whet Owl, a record for Sonoma Co. Henry W. Carriger, Sonoma, Cal.
Violet-Green Swallow in Marin Co; Two Unrecorded Captures. I was pleased to see my note on the Violet-green Swallow, which appeared in Bulletin No. 2, considered worthy of Mr. Carriger's remark in the last issue. The note was certainly rather vague and gave no reason for my identification, which I will now give: First: In all the birds which came near enough to be seen distinctly, the large white patches on either side of the rump were most conspicuous. Secondly: In one instance a bird wheeled so near me (not more than 20 feet away) that a flash of violet on the back was distinctly seen as the bird flew by. As these two points, I believe, are characteristic ? of the Violet-green and not of the Tree Swallow, think the birds seen may safely be called the former. As no specimens were secured there, of course, is a doubt, but I took the birds to be Violet-green Swallows.
Junco hyemalis—On January 24, 1897, at Berkely, Cal., I collected an adult ♂ (typical) of this species, as it was feeding by the roadside in company with a large flock of J. h. oregonus.
Spinus psaltria arizonæ.—Took a pair of birds at Santa Clara, Cal., the ♂ of which proved to be a typical specimen of this species. On comparison with a number of skins from Arizona and other localities, this bird was found to be a little darker than any and much darker than most of those from the type locality.
Three Records for San Mateo Co., Cal. I wish to report the capture here in Redwood City, on Sept. 17, '97, of a female Bobolink, (Dolichonyx oryzivorus). The bird was extremely shy and was found among cabbages in a vegetable garden, where it was associated with Bryant's and the Western Savanna Sparrow. This is, as far as I am aware, the first record for the State.
I also have two specimens ♂ ♀ of Leache's Petrel, taken on May 7, '99, near Pescadero, Cal. These are possibly the first ever recorded from the mainland coast of California. They are probably the same as those reported from the Farallone Islands.
In my collection at this time is a skin of the Mexican Ground Dove, belonging to Mr. Chas. Nichols of Pescadero, and taken near that place on Feb. 27, '98. The bird was shot by a boy and given to Mr. Nichols, who made a specimen of it. There were eleven of them in a flock, I understand. They arrived in the boy's yard during a severe storm and sought shelter in a wood-pile, where they remained for three days, when the weather cleared and they departed.
Nesting of Beldino's Sparrow. (Ammodramus beldingi.) April 21, 1899 while collecting near Santa Monica I was fortunate enough to discover three nests of Belding's Sparrow, two containing eggs and one containing young. The nests were placed in the salt grass about six inches above the ground and were composed principally of large and small straws of the salt grass with a few straws of Bermuda grass interwoven. The first nest, which contained four eggs, was well lined with horse-hair while the second nest (⅓) was lined mostly with fine straws, some hairs and a few gull feathers. The eggs are of a light blue ground color, with irregular markings of lilac and reddish brown. The set of four is marked almost entirely at the larger end, while the other set is well washed over the entire surface. Both sets were incubated about three-fifths.
