Mayhew 1950 April 10 Journal 30. Conaway Ranch, 2 miles east of Woodland, Yolo Co., Calif. birds were quite scarce in that region, as I found only 4 pairs before sundown. The weather was warm & clear with no sign of a breeze. The other birds seen this evening are: Red-winged Blackbird Great Blue Heron American Pipit Meadowlark Savannah Sparrow Phasant Mallard White-crowned Sparrow Coot American Egret Bittern Avocet Killdeer Cinnamon Teal Pintail Crow Canvasback (cripple) Red-billed Gull Green-winged Teal (cripple) Spoonbill Brewer's Blackbird Song Sparrow Mourning Dove This makes a total of 23 species seen this evening. April 22 I made a tour of the ranch this morning to see if the Mallards had started to nest yet. About 98% of the birds seen were loafing in pairs. One group of 3 or together, & 2 groups of 2 or together were seen. Apparently, mating has not begun, at least for the vast majority. I was surprised at the small number of Black-necked Stilts + Avocets that were seen. The numbers of Avocet have dropped off considerably in the past