126 Naturalist at Large 



of the rare black-capped petrel were beyond saving. On 

 the other hand four specimens of the local burrowing owl 

 were in very fair condition. I arranged to make a substantial 

 contribution to repairing the roof and took two of the 

 burrowing owls. Our Museum had one already and with 

 one of this pair I made an advantageous exchange with 

 Lord Rothschild, which still left us with a pair. The bird is 

 long since extinct. 



A few days later a visit to the Island of Marie Galante 

 made it quite evident that this little owl really had been 

 confined there, never occurring on Guadeloupe. Marie 

 Galante is low, flat and sandy, typical burrowing-owl 

 country. Guadeloupe is high, mountainous, and heavily 

 forested. It is a pity that the bird was named Speotyto 

 giiadeloupensis — one of the myriad unfortunate zoologic 

 names which are misleading but which have to remain in 

 use if we are to have any stability of nomenclature at all. 



Incidentally I had a chance to see alive on Marie Galante, 

 and indeed to collect, a series of the most magnificent of 

 all the tree lizards — the genus Anolis. This Garman col- 

 lected and described from this island when he visited 

 there with Mr. Agassiz on board the Blake, over half a 

 century ago. No one since had collected reptiles here and 

 this was fine exchange material. It is strange that so many 

 of these httle islands which at first sight appeared to be 

 but recently separated from their larger neighbors should 

 support so many extraordinarily distinct Hzards. The Anolis 

 of Marie Galante is a truly beautiful lizard, and if there 

 were not other species which more or less intergrade with 

 the general run of the species in this enormous genus, it 

 might be set forth itself as being genetically distinct. 



