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 174 THE CONDOR ]Vol,. VII been taken along the lower Colorado River; and the spurred towhee is not recorded from any of the desert regions of southern California, so that in the southernmost extension of their ranges, at least, megalon. yx and montanus are separated by some three hundred miles of desert, in which neither form is found. It may be of some interest to briefly glance over the distinguishing features of the various series of birds examined. Starting from the east we find first at the eastern base of the Rockies arcticus, with olivaceous back, extensively streaked with white. Going southward to New Mexico we encounter montanus, consider- ably darker, but with gray rump and with white streaks on back still quite exten- sive. I may say here that three examples of montanus from Fort Loveland, Colorado, have, in the character of their markings, a decided leaning toward arcticus. Cross- ing the desert to southern California, we find a still darker bird (megalonyx), with black rump and white nmrkings on interscapulars reduced to a few spots. As we go north along the coast the birds became still darker, grading throughfa/cifer to the extremely dark oregonus. With the specimens I examined it wag possible to form an almost unbroken chain, both as to color and geographically from tile olivaceous arcticus to black oregonus. In this connection it may also be of interest to speak of some aberrant mark- ings that were encountered in some of the specimens examined. These took the form in several examples of arcticus, of faint rusty markings on the occiput. A male specimen of megalon. yx has a small chestnut spot on the middle of the throat, while another has nearly the whole of the back grayish, the black of the head be- ing nearly as sharply defined against the back as infgnco oreganus. This last may possibly be a case of faded feathers due to arrested moult, though the specimen was shot in December and was otherwise in good condition. Another male speci- men of megalonyx has the chestnut on one side much paler than on the other. I would like in conclusion to express my gratitude to Mr. Grinnell for the loan of a valuable series of specimens from Pasadena and from Fort Tejon; to Mr. F. S. Daggett for the 1oau of a large number of skins from various localities iu Los Angeles County and from Palo Alto; and also to Dr. Dearborn of the Field Colum- bian Museum for the priv.ilege of examining the specimens under his care. Chica'o, Illinois. The American Crossbill in Montana BY P. M. SILLOX-VAY Ntllesumnerof i9o 3my attention was attracted by the nnusualactivity of the crossbill (Loxia curvirostra minor) in the Flathead forests. Late in June the adults became noticeable in their notes and movements, and in early July the subject was noted in my journal. On July 6, I made a record of the singing of the male as indicative of the fact that the birds were apparently enjoying a summer nuptial season; but somehow I had formed the conclusion that the crossbill nests only in late winter and early spring, and hence I was unusually blind to the real doings of the noisy chatterers in the tops of the tall conifers. The iegular call-note of the crossbill is a syllable sounding somewhat like the word "quit," generally uttered when the bird begins its flight from one station