PETROCHELIDON. 227 
Our knowledge of P. pyrrhonota in Mexico is almost confined to the observations of 
Grayson, who found it breeding in the month of May in the banks of the Mazatlan 
river, where he says it appeared to be a summer visitant, as he did not observe it in 
the winter months". Mazatlan, therefore, may be considered the extreme southern 
limit of its breeding-quarters ; but northward of this point, in the United States it is a 
very familiar species, except in the Southern States. The only other records we have 
of its occurrence in Central America are by Mr. Lawrence, who determined one of 
M‘Leannan’s Panama birds to be of this species 9, and Professor Baird, who tells us that 
another was obtained off the west coast of Central America by Capt. J. M. Dow 2. 
The habits of P. pyrrhonota in North America are very fully given by Dr. Coues in 
his ‘ Birds of the Colorado Valley,’ and especially its mode of nidification 18, 
2. Petrochelidon swainsoni. 
Hirundo melanogaster, Sw. Phil. Mag. new ser. i. p. 366}. 
Petrochelidon melanogaster, Cab. Mus. Hein. i. p. 47°. 
Petrochelidon swainsoni, Scl. P. Z.S. 1858, p. 296°; 1859, p. 376°; Cat. Am. B. p. 40°; Baird, 
Rey. Am. B. i. p. 290°; Salv. Ibis, 1866, p. 192%; Sumichrast, Mem. Bost. Soc. N. H. i. 
p. 547°; Lawr. Bull. U.S. Mus. no. 4. p. 17°; Dugés, La Nat. i. p. 141”. 
Hirundo coronota, Licht. Preis-Verz. mex. Vég. p. 2, cf. J. f. Orn. 1863, p. 58" (descr. nulla). 
P. pyrrhonoie valde similis, sed fronte rufa capitis lateribus concolori distinguenda. (Descr. femine ex 
Oaxaca, Mexico. Mus. nostr.) 
Hab. Mexico?°™, Guanajuato (Dugés!), Plateau of Mexico (Sumichrast®), Table- 
land and Real del Monte (Budlock*), Mirador (Sartorius °), Totontepec (Boucard *), 
Oaxaca (Boucard*+), Tehuantepec city (Swmichrast®); GUATEMALA, Dueiias’, 
Godines (0. S. & F. D. G.). 
Swainson’s inappropriate name (Hirwndo melanogaster) was the first given to this 
species, the black pectoral spot doubtless having suggested a word not applicable to 
another part of the bird. Mr. Sclater rectified this error by calling it Petrochelidon 
swainsont; and this name has since been almost universally adopted. Had Lichtenstein 
added a sufficient description when he called the bird Hirwndo coronata in 1831, this 
name might have been substituted for Swainson’s; but we can only recognize it by 
reference to the specimens in the Berlin Museum, which belong undoubtedly to 
Swainson’s species. 
P. swainsoni may be easily recognized from P. pyrrhonota by the forehead being of a 
rich chestnut instead of creamy white. In this respect it resembles P. fulva, which 
differs again in not having a black pectoral spot, and in the flanks and crissum being 
strongly tinged with fulvous. Dr. Coues* treats these differences with less considera- 
tion than they really deserve; for he looks upon P. fulva as scarcely, if at all, different 
from P. lunifrons (=P. pyrrhonota), whilst P. swainsoni is placed asa simple synonym of 
* B. Col. Vall. i. p. 426. 
29* 
