BROWN-CAPPED LEUCOSTICTE--_Leucosticte australis_ (Lower figure, male; upper, female)]
The range of Townsend's solitaire is from the plains of Colorado to the Pacific coast and north to British Columbia. According to Robert Ridgway, he has even been met with "casually" in Illinois. In Colorado many of the solitaires are permanent residents in the mountains, remaining there throughout the winter. Some of them, however, visit the plains during the fall, winter, and spring. In the winter they may be found from the lower valleys to an elevation of ten thousand feet, while they are known to breed as high as twelve thousand feet. The nests are placed on the ground among rocks, fallen branches and logs, and are loosely constructed of sticks and grass. From three to six eggs compose a set, the ground color being white, speckled with reddish brown. Doctor Coues says the birds feed on insects and berries, and are "capable of musical expression in an exalted degree." With this verdict the writer is in full accord.
The following list includes all the species and varieties, so far as known to naturalists, occurring in the State of Colorado. Of course, these birds as families are not restricted to that State, and therefore the catalogue comprehends many of the species to be found in adjacent and even more remote parts of the country. Aside from the author's own observations, he is indebted for a large part of the matter comprised in this list to Professor Wells W. Cooke's pamphlet, entitled, "The Birds of Colorado," with the several appendixes, and to the invaluable manuals of Mr. Ridgway and Dr. Coues.
According to the latest information accessible to the writer, 389 species and varieties occur in Colorado, of which 243 are known to breed. This is a superb record, and is excelled by only two other States in the Union, namely, Texas and California. Colorado's splendid list is to be explained on the ground of its wonderful variety of climate, altitude, soil, and topographical features, such as its plains, foothills, lower mountains, and towering peaks and ranges, bringing within its boundaries many eastern, boreal, middle western, and far western forms.
The author's preference would have been to begin the roll with the most interesting birds, those to which he gave the largest share of his attention, namely, the oscines, but he has decided to follow the order and nomenclature of the Check-List of North American birds as arranged by the American Ornithologists' Union. In deference to the general reader, however, he has placed the English name of each bird first, then the scientific designation. The numbers correspond to the American Check-List. By noting those omitted, the reader will readily discover what species have not been found in Colorado.