10, 1951, a nest was found on a high conglomerate flat devoid of practically all vegetation. The nest, placed on a point projecting seaward, contained two eggs and was composed of about a quart of small angular pebbles carried to the site. The nest was several hundred yards from any well used trail, but a person walking along the nearest trail appeared to the incubating birds below as a silhouette against the skyline. Each time a human appeared on the trail, the incubating bird would steal quietly from the nest. On Sundays, when visitor traffic was greatest, the birds were absent from the eggs for prolonged periods, probably for the entire afternoon. During this particular year, fog and cold winds were unusually prevalent, with the sun shining hardly at all. The eggs probably became chilled during one of the extended periods when incubation was not in progress, for they did not hatch. The incubation period of the Black Oystercatcher is from twenty-seven to thirty days. It is interesting to note that this pair incubated until August 4, a total of 55 days, or just double the normal period. On this date the nest was deserted and the eggs later disappeared. There was no nest on the point in 19.52, but on May 24, 1953, a nest with one egg was found. It was six feet from the nest of 1951, and it was likewise composed of small angular pebbles. It was beside a six-inch clump of spurrey, the only plant on the tablelike rock. On May 25, there was still one egg. On May 26, there were two eggs and at 5:30 p.m. one of the birds was incubating. Human interference was similar to that of 1951, but the weather was dryer, sunnier and warmer, and although the eggs were left uncovered as long as in 1951, the warmer days apparently kept them from chilling. On June 2 1, at 8:00 p.m., approximately twenty-six days after incubation began, one egg was cracked. Peeping and scratching could be heard from within the shell. At ' 11: 30 a.m. on the following day there was no visible development beyond that of the pre vious day, but one young was calling loudly from inside the shell in a voice which already resembled somewhat the parents'. On June 22, at 8:00 p.m., neither young was out of the egg but both were now calling loudly. At 7:30 a.m. on June 23, the twenty-ninth day, one egg had a small hole. At 7:00 p.m. on this same date, both young were out of the egg and one was dry. Since the littoral marine fauna of Point Lobos is markedly different from that of the Alaskan coast studied by Webster, it seems advisable to report food items in the diet of the young oyster-catchers. Webster (Condor, 43, 1941: 175) states that "the best method of determining the food of the Black Oyster-catcher. .. is to collect the shells scattered around young birds which are being fed by the parents." My nest of 1953 was exceptionally suitable for a study of this type because it was on a pedestal-like column separated from any other flat area by a small chasm a foot across, and although

No abstract

No abstract

In July, 1955, Emily Smith told me that there was a Black Swift egg in a seaweed nest in a sea cave near Santa Cruz. Knowing, through the late Clark Streator, that Black Swifts had nested in the cave, she visited it on July 7. As far as can be determined, this is the first record of a nest in such a situation. The location did, however, correspond in certain respects with other nest sites. It was dark, no sunlight ever reaching the nest, and it was constantly moist. The nest in the sea cave was a thick-walled, compact, well-built saucer of live, green seaweed (Enteromorpha sp.), an abundant plant in the area, growing upon both ho& zontal and vertical rocks; this plant comprised about 90 per cent of the nest. In the center and making up about 8 per cent of the bulk was Phyllospadix, with Porph_yra naiadurn epiphytic on it. These are both marine plants, the former a flowering plant, the latter a red alga. Another red alga represented by a fragment was Plocamium pacificurn. Two kinds of moss were also used in the nest and together comprised about 2 per cent of the bulk: Porothamnium bigelovii and Brachythecium(?). The former is described in bryological works as growing on moist shaded rocks, sometimes in the reach of salt spray. The nest had a "cushiony" appearance. No saliva was used. The complete clutch, consisting of one egg, was present in the nest at 7:00 a.m. on July 7. When Miss Smith visited the cave at this time there was no incubating bird present. Outside, she saw two Black Swifts circle by the entrance several times and then tly out of sight. Soon afterward there were four swifts present, two engaging in courtship behavior, but it was not long before all four were gone, none having entered the cave. The swifts were not seen again in the course of an hour' s watch. It is possible that incubation had not begun on the 7th. On July 14 I visited the cave, and, as I entered, the incubating bird flushed from the nest. On July 21 the adult was reluctant to leave. On the 24th I led a group of twenty naturalists to the cave and we entered as a group. While I held a flashlight beam upon the bird, the group stood some ten feet away, and although we watched and talked for some time, the bird sat tight. A visit to the cave on August 4 revealed a black-skinned, naked, helpless little swift sprawled in the bottom of the nest. No adult was seen. Murphy (1951:449) gives the incubation period as approximately 24 days. If incubation was begun on July 8, as is suspected, and the egg hatched on August 3, this would give an incubation period of 27 days in this case. On August 18, at an age of approximately two weeks, the nestling was completely covered with heavy down, and unopened feathers were present only on the wings and tail. By August 25 it had short tail feathers and the wings were feathering out. The bird was banded on this date. On September 1 the nestling appeared to be nearly full grown and was observed

No abstract