64 Andrew Fackson Grayson. | [ZOE 
ished smoking; it picked it up and came with it to the log upon 
which I was seated, within a few feet from me, then thoroughly 
inspected the bit of cigar, carefully picking it to pieces as if to dis- 
‘cover what was inside; at length after its curiosity was fully satisfied, 
it perched upon a branch near by, upon which it repeatedly wiped 
its bill, doubtless having become slightly nauseated with the to- 
bacco. I often found them beating the land snail shells against a - 
rock; this they would continue to do until able to extricate the snail 
which it swallowed with gusto. 
Upon the islands they are more numerous than on any part of the 
mainland, and like many other birds which I found there common 
to the mainland, whose powers of flight are weak, they never mi- 
grate. It seems a mystery as to how they became denizens of 
these island wilds, when we take into consideration these facts and 
the wide expanse of sea to be crossed. But Nature in her mys- 
terious plans seems to awaken into existence the creatures best 
suited to the localities she has provided for them. 
This thrush subsists upon insects and their larve as well as the 
various kinds of wild fruit, which, one kind or another, may be found 
at all seasons in the tropical woods. Its geographical distribution 
extends over the greater part of Mexico. It is quite common about 
Tepic and Colima ; in all wooded districts and particularly in the 
warmer regions of Mexico it may be found. It is recorded from 
Jalapa, Valley of Mexico and Mirador and I found it in Tehuante- 
pec, but not common there. ; 
Figure in the plate, life size. 
ROSE-BREASTED THRUSH. Rhodinocichla rosea (Less. )—Prof. 
Baird states, in his “ Review of American Birds,” that this species 
was originally described from Caracas, Venezuela. Mr. Law- 
rence of New York has received it from the line of the Panama 
Railroad; while the Smithsonian Institution possesses specimens 
from Colima and Mazatlan, western Mexico, collected by Xantus de 
Vesey and A. J. Grayson, thus showing its very extensive geo- 
graphical distribution within the tropical regions. 
It is a bird very exclusive in its habits, and would rarely ever be | 
seen unless cautiously sought for, or by accident, so closely does it — : 
keep near the ground in very dense thickets. Its notes alone dis-_ 
covered it to me, as also many other species which | have collected 
_ In the impenetrable forests of western Mexico. 
