BREWSTER: BIRDS OF THE CAPE REGION, LOWER CALIFORNIA. 91 



Falco sparverius Baird, Kept. Pac. R. R. Surv., IX. 1858, 13, 14, part. Cooes, 



Check List, 1873, 6U, no. 346, part; 2d ed., 1882, 87, no. 508, part. Baikd, 



Brewer, and Ridgwat, Hist. N. Amer. Birds, III. 1874, 1G9-171, part. 



A. O. U, Ciieck List, 1886, 196, no. 360, part. (?) Bryant, Proc. Calif. 



Acad. Sci., 2d ser., II. 1889, 281, 282, part (Cape Region, etc.). 

 {Tinnunculus] sparverius Gray, Hand-list, I. 1869, 28, no. 216, part. 

 [Fak-o] sparverius CouES, Key >.'. Amer. Birds, 1872, 214, 215, part. 

 Cerchneis sparveria Sharpe, Cat. Brit. Birds, I. 1874, 437-439, part. 

 Tinnunculus sparverius Ridgway, Nom. N. Amer. Birds (Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., no. 



21), 1881, 38, no. 420, part. 

 Falco sparverius peninsuluris Mearns, Auk, IX. 1892, 267 (orig. descr. ; type from 



San Jose'). A. O. U. Comm., Auk, X. 1893, 60, no. 360 b ; Check List, 2d 



ed., 1895, 140, no. 360 b. 

 F.[alro] sparverius Ridgway, Man. N. Amer. Birds, 2d ed., 1896, 252, part. 

 [Cerchneis] peninsularis Sharpe, Hand-list, I. 1899, 278. 



The characters by which Dr. Mearns has proposed to distinguish Falco spar- 

 verius peninsularis are presented very constantly by twelve of the Sparrow 

 Hawks collected by Mr. Frazar. Among these are an adult male taken at 

 Triunfo on April 20, another in excessively worn breeding plumage shot at 

 San Jose del Rancho on July 8, and a young male, just from the nest and 

 barely large enough to fly, which was captured at the place last named on 

 July 17. Eight of the remaining specimens were obtained in the Cape Region 

 (at Triunfo, Santiago, or San Jose del Cabo) in October, November, or Decem- 

 ber, while the ninth was shot at Carmen Island on March 2. 



This small, light-colored form of the Sparrow Hawk is of common occur- 

 rence in the Cape Region in autumn and winter, but it does not appear to 

 breed there at all numerously, for Mr. Frazar met with it in summer only at 

 San Jose del Rancho where he notes it as " very rare." It is believed to be 

 confined to Lower California, but we have no definite knowledge as to just how 

 far up the Peninsula its distribution extends. Mr. Bryant reports that he 

 met with Falco sparverius " on Santa Margarita Island, Magdalena Island, 

 Guadalupe Island, and several places" in Lower California; he also states 

 that Mr. Anthony found it " common in summer along the base of San 

 Pedro Martir, ranging in May to 9,000 feet altitude, and only seen on the 

 coast during winter." These records relate of course either to peninsularis 

 or deserticolus — or both — but at the time they were published neither of the 

 forms just mentioned had been described. 



Polyborus cheriway (Jacq.). 



Audubon's Caracara. 



Polyborus cUrncay Belding, Proc. U. S. Nat. Mus., V. 1883, 543 (Cape Region), 

 547 (San Jose). Bryant, Proc. Calif. Acad. Sci., 2d ser., IL 1889, 282 

 (Cape Region , Cape St. Lucas). Benuire, Life Hist. N. Amer. Birds, pt. 

 1. 1892, 318 (descr. egg from Cape St. Lucas). 



