The Houma courier. (Houma, La.) 1878-1939, 1896-07-18

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and Mexico and has set UP q string
Of granite monuments all the way from
u Haso westward 10 San Diego, on the
Pasiac ocean, since September, 1892. IA
has been the means Of giving to the
scientists Of the world much valuable
information.
The most fruitful results Of the
scientific expedition were those among
the birds and animals. Dr.. Edgar a.
Mearhs. q. s. a., had charge Of collect
ing 1fnithoiogicai and mammal speci-
nlens in the progress across the deserts
and mountains and through the Coco
pah indian region. The doctor and his
assistants collected nearly 1000 speci-
mems Of curious life, and they have been
busy for weeks in arranging the enor-
NOUS collection. The doctor has packed
bis specimens in San Diego and has
gone on to the Smithsonian institution
with them, expecting to put in some
two years in classifying them and put
ting them In shape for the information
they will impart to ~naturalists every
where.
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stand in the Cocopah mountains before
the advance Of man is one Of noble size
"a bird that, as a strong, powerful and
graceful flyer, is the peer Of American
birds. 1t is the California vulture. In
size it is larger than the South Ameri-
can condor, that king Of birds in the
cloud-touching Andes. Few of these
birds are left in California, and shey
are not numerous even In that part of
the Cocopah mountains traversed by
DR.. Mearns. It has been remarked that
the California vulture is a cowardly
bird, but the members of DR.. Mearns'
party do not think so after observing
one of these vultures fight a rattlesnake.
It was in the early morning. The big
bird had seized the snake behind the
head and was struggling upward with
fits w~rithing, deadly burden. The
snakes captor appeared aware that its
victim was dangerous. The burden was
heavy, as the reptile was nearly Ave
feet long. The great pinions of the
vulture waved rapidly as it slowly as
cended from the mountain mesa. AL
though large in size, these vu1tures are
not as strong as they appear to be. Up
and up went the bird and the rattle
snake.
Tho grip Of the bird on the snakes
body was not Of the best. The snake
seemed to be squirming from its cap
tors talons at least sufficiently to en-
able it to strike at the great bird. The
triangular head Of the snake was seen
to recoil and dart at the mass Of feath-
ers. 1t did this once or twice, and then
with q shrek the yulture dropped its
prey. The bird was then probably 500
feet II. So above the observers. The
tonished men below were then treated
spectacle seldom seen anywhere.
Few birds but a vulture could accom-
plish such afeat. The instant the snake
escaped from the birds clutches It
dropped earthward like q shot. And
like a shot the bird dropped after it,
catching the astonished snake in mid.
air ere It touched the ground with a
grip that caused death. At any rate,
the snake ceased to wiggle, and the
yulture scared away to a mountain
peak to devour it's hard-earned meal.
Why the snake did not bite the vulture
and cause the death Of the bird can
only be explained by the fact that the
thick feathers probably protected the
biped's flesh from incision by the rep
tiles fangs.
These vultures r closely allied to
the common turkey buzzard. Their
color is a glossy black, with patches Of
white under the wings. The greater
part of the neck is bare, like the turkey
buzzard, with q rufle where the feathers
begin. There is a bright orange patch
IN the head. A fair-sized specimen of
the California vulture is four feet high
and weighs about 20 pounds. Years
ago, when these huge birds were com
mon, 1t was a familiar sight in the val
leys TO see California vrltures and bur
yards feeding on the same carcass In
perfect harmony, while occasionally a
raven would join them. These vultures
were frequently caught alive, when
gorged, by a lariat in the hands Of q
cowboy. One cause Of the extermina-
ton of the vulture In California has
been through the medium of poisoned
meat, prepared by ranchers to kill pes
tiferous animals. The breeding habits
Of the vultures are practically unknown,
although 1t is supposed to nest in caves
or cliffs, like the turkey buzzard. Ow-
ing to the practical extinction Of the
bird, its eggs are as rare and valuable
as are those of the great aux, and will
probably become 0 valuable. Some
Is perfect eggs Of the great aux are in
collections, one of these eggs being
worth $500 or more. Only two eggs Of
the California vulture are known to ex-
list. Even the national museum at
Washington does not possess one of
these valuable specimens.
Observations Of bird life at different
places along the route Of the boundary
survey, which sometimes took the nat
uralists into the mountains, were of
rare interest. At one point along the
shores of a small lake many dead birds
were seen. These birds were known as
the 'eared grebe." The bodies OF the
birds found within the limits Of a given
distance were counted, and the number
of dead birds about the shores Of the
entire lake was estimated at 100000. II
was thought that one Of the two causes,
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