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 I26 THE CONDOR I Vol. IV ocean; while to the left the dark wood- ed bottom forked and tongues of forest extended up the branching canyons between brown bare ridges until they dwindled out toward the higher flanks of the lofty mountain. The effect on the forest of slope exposure and mois- ture was here beautifully illustrated, for the n(rtheast slopes were clothed in places nearly t(the top of the ridges, while the h.4 s,,ttttwesV sl,,pes were tlS!IqlIV l t'<-C!c>.4 $'.v l'or ,,:casional scrul,,tk* dud stretches l' ltw brush. An examknation of the avifauna dearly showed L.w_o distinct phases of bird pop- ulation corresponding to these two temperature belts. The upper ridges and open hillsides under the glare of the sun and with their thin clothing of smaller vegetation formed' a congenial home for many birds familiar in the warm interior parts of California. Here we found'such Upper Sonoran spedes as Toxosloma redivivum, ]ipilo crissalis, Chamea fasciala intermedia, Geococcyx cahfornianus, ]halenotilus nultalli cali- fornicus, Lophertyx californicu, and lphelocoma californi(a. But 'down in the deep canyons everything Ws dif- ferent. The cool, damp air currents penetrate up the valley from',t13e ocean and diverge up each branch nd can- yon. One could almost trace the s.,ores of this air-stream in its ascending flow by the limits of the redwoods. These immense trees on the .South Fork formed a dense forest, so shaded that there was little underbrush except where it thinned out up th'e canyon sides and where felled for s,hingles. 'Near the upper .timber limit where it was warmer and less humid, many Doug- las spruces were to be seen, with tan- bark oaks, madtones and bay trees. It struck us as unusual, at least in our ex- perience, to find a "high" zone below a lower one. But here the direct effect of the ocean more than offsets. altitudi- nal decrease in temperature 'and evi- dently accounts for the Transition :ith many Boreal elements being at the 1ov- est level. In the thickest redwoods, birds were scarce, but what there were reminded us strongly of regions far to the northward. In the tan. gles of fallen trees and salmon-berry bushes we found the diminutive winter wren (Trofflodf- les ,iemah2fiacificus). The rasping call Jaote and occasional song to us sounded like the squeaky noise of the brakes of a wagon on a down grade. Newly fledged young were taken, proving this to be the southernmost breeding station of the species anywhere in the United States. Creepers (Certhia american occidenlalis) were about equal to the wrens in point of numbers, but were to be seen only high up on the tree trunks, usually far above dust-shot range. Their attenuated notes were continually heard in favorable places. But the birds themselves were difficult to dis- cern, for they were like as not to be on the opposite side of a tree, and the yen-. triloquous quality of their notes made their discovery still more uncertain. A bro9d of bobotailed young were seen awkwardly clambering about a tree trunk following their anxious parents. Another bird confined to the deepest parts of the woods was the Monterey hermit thrush, a bird which we found more eusive the more we sought after it. At first we were content with list- ening to its song which now and then swelled into a full melodious strain only to die away in a far-off tinkle. Such a song has to be felt to be appreciated, for it seems to exert a hypnotic influ- ence, inducing in one a sort of melan- choly reverie. But we warded off the spell, remembering that here was the type locality of [r.?/ocichla ffullata slev- ini. With this thought came the vision of a series ,O f synmetricM skins lined up in the presence of the A. O. U. Com- mittee to prove the existence of a name- able race. We forgot the sentiment in- spired by that wonderful song, and used it only as a clue for the undoing of its author. But it proved a will-o'-the- wisp, for our stealthy scouting availed