X BIRDS OF THE COLORADO VALLEY 



Surveys, as Dr. Heermann, already mentioned, Dr. 0. B. E. Ken- 

 nedy, Mr. J. H. Clarke, Mr. Artlinr Scliott, and others. Dr. T. 

 C. Heniy, then of the Army, published several valuable papers 

 on the birds of New Mexico at about this time, and Dr. J. G-. 

 Cooper gained much additional information during his some- 

 what later residence in Arizona. Much, however, remained to 

 be done when Dr. Coues entered Arizona in 1864, and spent 

 nearly two years in studying the natural history of the Terri- 

 tory. He published in 18G6 the first formal list of the birds of 

 Arizona, describing new species and adding others to the fauna 

 of the United States; and his personal experiences, now for the 

 first time set forth in full, afford a large basis of the biographi- 

 cal portion of the present treatise. Lieutenant (now Captain) 

 Charles Bendire, U. S. A., subsequently resided for some time 

 in Southern Arizona, where he made large collections of nests 

 and eggs, and furnished much information respecting the breed- 

 ing habits of the birds, which was published in part by Dr. 

 Coues, but princix)ally by Dr. T. M. Brewer. By far the most 

 important contributions hitherto offered to the natural his- 

 tory proper of the birds of New Mexico and Arizona are those 

 recently made by Mr. H. W. Henshaw, during his connection 

 with the Engineer Survey West of the 100th Meridian. This 

 accompUshed ornithologist has added many new species to 

 the fauna of the United States, and has published the most 

 complete list we possess of the birds of Arizona ; while his 

 ■ extensive memoir in the 4to Eeports of the Survey mentioned 

 . gives us much new information respecting the distribution and 

 the habits of the birds of New Mexico and Arizona. 



I may also advert in the present connection to several late 

 publications upon the birds of contiguous regions as bearing 

 upon the special subject. Among these may be mentioned the 

 papers on Texan birds by H. E. Dresser, H. B. Butcher, C. A. H. 

 McCauley, J. C. Merrill, and G. B. Sennett ; on those of Colo- 

 rado by C. E. Aiken and C. H. Holden, and E. Eidgway; to Mr. 

 Henshaw's List of the Birds of Utah ; to Dr. Cooper's work on 

 the ornithology of California ; to Mr. J. A. Allen's Eeconnois- 

 sance in Kansas, Colorado, Wyoming, and Utah ; and especially 

 to Mr. Eidgway's important memoir on the Ornithology of the 

 Survey of the 40th Parallel. 



It is believed that the present volume will be found to be a 

 thorough digest of the information we possess upon the subject. 



F. Y. HAYDEN, 

 United States Geologist. 



