48 PROCEEDINGS OF THE ACADEMY OF [1S93. 



179. Spinus pinus. Pine Siskin. 



A very abundant resident in all localities. 



180. Poocaetes gramineus. Vesper Sparrow. 



Numerous in all open situations between the Cascades and 

 Rockies as far north as Lac La Hache. The presence of birds 

 in the Ashcroft region, so nearly identical with Atlantic coast 

 specimens, is at variance with the prevailing tendency of west- 

 ern forms to supplant the Boreal in that locality. 



*181. (?) Poocaetes gramineus confinis. Western Vesper Sparrow. 



I wounded a singing male Vesper Sparrow near Victoria, but 

 it was lost. Fannin calls the coast Poocaetes, P. gramineus con- 

 finis. If it differs at all from P. gramineus I am disposed to 

 think it will prove to be P. gramineus affinis. 



182. Ammodramus sandwichensis. Sandwich Sparrow. 



183. Ammodramus sandwichensis alaudinus. Western Savanna Sparrow. 



Mr. Chapman having kindly loaned me the entire series of 

 Ammodramus in the Streator collection, I am enabled, in connec- 

 tion with my own series, to trace the relations and distribution 

 of the two forms with some exactness. Sixty-five skins from 

 twenty localities in Washington and British Columbia, taken dur- 

 ing regular intervals from April to October inclusive, form the 

 basis of this examination. Alaudinus breeds in all localities in 

 Washington and British Columbia, from the Rocky Mountains 

 to the coast (including the islands), from sea level to an eleva- 

 tion of 5,000 feet. It probably winters sparingly on the south 

 shores of Puget Sound, and begins to breed there the second 

 week in April. In the interior it was not found nesting before 

 June 1st, laying probably the latter part of May. 



Intermediates referable to alaudinus were passing northward 

 in flocks on Vancouver Island after typical alaudinus had begun 

 to breed there. These connect so perfectly the two forms breed- 

 ing respectively in Alaska and southern British Columbia that it 

 is impossible to classify satisfactorily any but the extremes. It 

 is on this account, probably, that Mr. Fannin has included Van- 

 couver Island in the breeding range of sandwichensis. On the 

 contrary, typical sandwichensis have all passed Victoria by the 

 middle of May, leaving behind them typical alaudinus and a few 

 intermediates as summer residents. In the interior this intergrad- 

 ing is scarcely noticeable, due, probably, to the absence of sand- 



