The Colville examiner. [volume] (Colville, Wash.) 1907-1948, 1922-06-10
John B.SIater Tells
About California
Tells of Animal Life Which
Marks Warm Climate
of Southern Land

key buzZard locates its menu by
sight or smell is a question that has
been definitely settled by the forest
rangers, who, following instructions
from the government to investigate
all approaches of the vulture to the
earth in the hope that the dead body
of some hapless mountaineer might
be located, find for the odor. 1t is
the smell. The olfactories of the
bird are so delicately set that it dis
Germs in the clear air at great height
the merest taint. 1t sails in wide
circles exploring the air ucrrents
thousands of feet above ground. His
forays above the landscape are pur-
sued against the breeze mostly in
circles exploring the air currents
form over the hot country and go
straight up. Once he strikes this
rising current laden with the invita-
tion to breakfast he commences to
descend in narrowing circles until
dead tree or craig offers him the
vantage point for reconnoiter. The
forester with his glass has followed
the vulture and makes for the scene
where the revelry has commenced in
the process of stripping the bones of
a dead carcass. At the report of
rifle the festive flock of buzzards
riot out of range in great fright
and their prey is easily found. 1t is
claimed that these vultures, which
range from Alaska to Patagonia,
have been tested by secreting dead
bodies in the deep forests where they
follow in to the discovery with as
great accuracy as if guided by sight
in an open field
The turkey buzzard or California
vulture is essentially a bird of the
| desert. The most difficult cliff
| along the crest of the mountain
| ranges is it's nesting place, and its
greatest delight is in searching the
desert for the dead Sailing to
heights far above the aerial habitat
of any other bird, and inhabiting
the purest air in its search for sub
sistence it sinks to the lowest depths
in its choice of victuals.
| make special mention of the
buZzard as among the feathered
denizens of arid America because he
performs the highly useful office Of
scavenger of the earth and is en-
titled in many ways to the respect
| of both human as well as animal
creation. Other birds of this bar
rem southern country are mostly OF
the owl and hawk species. Strange
to say, practically all of the desert
birds are birds of prey, songster
seldom being encountered. Most
everyone knows something about
hawks and owls, and those found
here are very slightly different in
habits and appearance from those
elsewhere. But there is another
species of the birds of prey that is
found nowhere else. He is the road
runner. He is about the size of a
small bantam chicken, has a shape
and style similar to the blue jay, and
possesses all of the brilliant color
ing of the barnyard rooster, The
road-runner seldom leaves the
ground in longer fight than neces-
sary to cross a canyon, but he flies
gracefully. He seems to enjoy the
company of man and is a true sport.
He will challenge the traveller,
| whether on horseback or in auto
mobile, for a race, and the jackrab-
bit has nothing on him for speed,
| for he will take the lead on clear
stretch and keep up a gait of 90
miles an hour without Tapping
wing or leaving the ground. He will
follow a good road for miles if he
has a spirited adversary and. always
wins. The next day the traveller will
| find him at the same starting point
ready for another race. Unlike the
vulture, he seeks the living rather
than the dead, and like in the. case
| of the cat and the mouse, he likes
to give his. victim a chance. From
the lowly earthworm to the diamond
rattler he feeds his hungering nav,
and he slays one as easily, it seems,
as he does the other For intelli-
gence and industry l think the road
runner has few equals. He is so
friendly disposed towards man that
he is seldom victimized, and always
seems to be trying in the most en-
tertaining way to show his apprecia-
ton.
The creatures of the desert that
crawl and hiss, the serpents and in
sects that bite and sting, are no less
interesting than the birds and quad
rupeds of this region, and they per-
form no less important parts in the
economies of man. They are a bal