Identifier: birdsofcaliforni00whe (find matches)
Title: Birds of California; an introduction to more than three hundred common birds of the state and adjacent islands, with a supplementary list of rare migrants, accidental visitants, and hypothetical subspecies
Year: 1904 (1900s)
Authors: Wheelock, Irene (Grosvenor), Mrs
Subjects: Birds
Publisher: Chicago, A. C. McClurg & co
Contributing Library: Smithsonian Libraries
Digitizing Sponsor: Smithsonian Libraries

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Text Appearing Before Image:
ts ; gular sac blue. Young: Head, neck, and rump dark brown ; rest of upper parts palerbrown ; under parts dusky brown, paler on throat. Geographical Distribution: Pacific coast of NoYth America from CapeSt. Lucas to Washington. Breeding Range: Islands of the Pacific from Lower California to Wash-ington. Breeding Season : Approximately, May 1 to July 20. Nest and Eggs: Identical in appearance with those of Faralloue cor-morant. Size 2.40 X 1.50. This is the most common cormorant of the Californiacoast, and may be distinguislied by its stiff white featherson sides of neck and by its blue gular sac. Rookeriesare found on seal rocks near Cypress Point, Monterey, atSanta Cruz, and on the Farallones. These birds nest incolonies on the steepest crags and ledges of those islands.About the middle of jNIay they may be seen carrying sea-weed and kelp to their chosen site. There they fashion anew shallow, bowl-shaped nest, which becomes cementedwith guano; or perhaps they redecorate an old one V
Text Appearing After Image:
122. liUANDT CoiUMollANT Fhalacrocorax penicillatus BIRDS FOUND NEAR SHORE OR IN BAYS 51 with fresh sea moss. From the amount of guano used,and the solidity with which most of these structureshad become cemented to the rock, — indeed, they seemeda part of the rock itself, — I judged that they had beenhanded down from one cormorant generation to another,for many years. Yet each season sees them carefullyredecorated on the outside with new, bright-coloredseaweed. This weed is seldom picked up on the rocks,but is freshly pulled from the bed of the ocean nearshore, the birds diving in some places more than fiftyfeet. Upon tiniing one, I found it was under watertwo and one half minutes; it then reappeared witha bill full of scarlet alga). Here again the mischievousgulls are in evidence, and the poor Cormorant must guardhis gayly trimmed nest, or every bit of his hard-earnedmoss will be stolen. After the five chalky green eggsarc laid his vigilance nmst never relax, for cormoranteggs an

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