As these notes reveal, thrashers and the road-runner select different portions of their respective anatomies for intensive sun treatment. The reason for this is not clear. Rhody's dusting is not a prolonged action like that of other dusting birds, such as quail, for example. He does not work the dust up among his feathers. His object appears to be to scratch his throat, breast and belly. Any place will serve, whether there is loose earth there are not. For example: the hard ground or even a concrete side-walk. The operation lasts but a few seconds. About 3:30 P.M. on the 17th. I came upon Rhody in the orchard and stopped about 15 feet from him. Brownie put in an appearance about 25 feet away in the bushes and almost in line with Rhody. I wanted to see how they would behave toward each other, so displayed worms. R did not apparently see B, but the latter was acutely aware of the former's presence and somewhat suspicious. Rhody came to me first and I tossed worms to him at about 3 feet distance, he catching them on the fly expertly. B approached warily and when R saw him, R craned his neck and watched him interestedly. B made a detour about R and approached me from the side somewhat nervously. I then gave them worms alternately, B taking them from hand and retreating each time. Finally he would only approach me from the rear, R being in front of me stretching his neck to watch B. He seemed to be actuated by curiosity only and made no hostile moves. I tossed a worm into neutral territory, which Rhody ran for and got, B making no effort to get there first. Voices of children were suddenly heard in the distance. R immediately lost all interest in me and stared intently through the fence, did not like what he saw (two children about 200 yards away) not even approaching us), ran swiftly past me, climbed the bank behind me, went up into a ceanothus where he could get a good view and watched the children as long as they were in sight (perhaps