60 THE CONDOR ' Vol. XIV

and was on the eggs when I felt in the hole. They seem to exhibit this uneasiness only when the eggs are highly incubated or when there are newly hatched young, and not very frequently even then. When there are no eggs and both birds of the pair are in the nest hole, one is likely to crawl up to the entrance and look out at any intruder. At such times they do not snap their mandibles and, in retreating, gradually fade out of sight with a movement so slow as to be scarcely perceptible. As I carried my ladder to the next cactus, a Gambel Partridge flushed from under a small mesquite, and glancing that way I saw a nest full of eggs in a slight hollow at the foot of the mesquite and without any protecting cover. The twelve eggs it contained were fresh. One of them had two large claw holes in it and was partially dried up. The bird could be heard calling near by while I was engaged in photographing the nest and eggs. Climbing the next cactus I cut into a hole around which two Gila Wood- peckers were. making a big fuss. There was nothing in it. I think it is their habit to dig fresh holes after raising their brood of young. These fresh holes are not occupied' that year but are made use of the next year when the sap has had a chance to dry and form the hard lining which coats the inside of all the cavities. I have found but one fresh hole occupied as a nest. Farther on I found a set of five Ash-throated Flycatcher eggs just hatching. In the same cactus was a nest with.young Mexican Screech Owls, how many I do not know, as when I first put. my hand into the hole one bit me. I jerked my hand out to find it covered with bedbugs of all sizes, hundreds of them. How I did hustle to get rid of them, spending some ten minutes of precious time care- fully examining to see that not the smallest mite remained to crawl. How the young owls could survive is a mystery to me. I think the hole must have become infected from bats which quite commonly roost in such places. The next giant had a Cactus Wren (tteleodytes brunneicapillus couesi) nest in it. A large open cavity had been stuffed full of the usual mass of grass and feathers which constitutes this bird's nest. There were three well incubated eggs of an unusually dark type. It looked very odd to see this nest in such an unusual situation. There were plenty of normal nesting sites all around, too, and that such a one should be selected would probably have to be laid to the eccentricity of the individual bird. Crossing the Rillito we went a couple of miles and examined several very tall sahuaros and took another set of four Elf Owl, with incubation far advanced. We also found young of Mexican Screech Owl, Gilded Flicker and Gila Wood- pecker. As we were intending to start for Tombstone that day we could go no farther. Getting back to Tucson, we replenished our oil and gasoline and about ten ^. . started on the homeward trail. A terrific, hot wind was blowing which made driving very unpleasant. The heat caused some tire trouble so we did not stop for any collecting and about five o'clock reached the Empire Ranch again. Leaving here at six-thirty the next morning we stopped to look through some mesquites, and secured a set of badly incubated eggs of the Swainson Hawk (Buteo swainsoni), and one of almost fresh Western Redtail (Buteo borealis calurus). May 26 is a pretty late date for the latter to have eggs. Both these nests were about fifteen feet up in small mesquites. In crossing a flat covered with sacaton grass I saw and heard several Meadowlarks (Sturnella neglecta), and while watching them heard the unmis- takable notes of a Grasshopper Sparrow (,4mmodramus savannarum bimacu-