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Status: Indexed

Collector: Grinnell-1925
Location: Mineral, 4800 ft.
Date: June 19
Page Number: 2481

3:00 p.m. - Watched a White-headed Woodpecker drink.
It flew down from a yellow pine to some shallow running
water in an open road-side, alighted in horizontal
position on the ground, and dipped it's bill 6 times,
after each dip raising its billed skyward at an
angle of fully 80 degrees from the horizontal. The bird
then flew to a prostrate log, and foraged horizontally
along its lower curvature.

5:00 p.m. - Mrs. G found a Mountain Quail's nest
yesterday with two eggs in it, and we showed it
to Dixon. This was close to a flycatcher's nest
which Dixon is photographing; and he found that the
third egg was laid this morning between 8 and 9.
At 4 this afternoon he reported all the eggs gone.
I came over to see if I could learn the cause of
the loss. Examination disclosed all three eggs there,
but covered up all but a small part of the surface of one egg,
by the fine ceanothus leaf (dry) litter! Had the
quail done this intentionally, like a grebe? I
doubt it; so I have left the eggs in their hollow
uncovered, so they will be in sight to "lay to"
tomorrow. This is merely my theory! The
"nest" is merely a depression in the dry loose litter
on top of a prostrate rotting log, overspread from
one side with ceanothus cordulatus stems, twiggery
and green leafage. The nest is 480 mm. above the
ground on either side of the log. We have seen
the quail within 50 yards of the site several times.

Notes and Questions

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Nathani

Instead of all those eggs, I suggest all three eggs

Nathani

Instead of all those eggs, I suggest all three eggs

Nathani

Ben -- for some reason, when I clicked on a new add note, it copied the last one.