302 BULLETIN 17 6, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM 



State: "Throughout the first three weeks in September we have 

 observed Vaiix's swift to pass by in its flight toward the south. The 

 birds will be seen at intervals all day and at times even at twilight. 

 They fly at all heights, singly or in groups, and as a rule quite 

 rapidly. It is not uncommon to see them in the company of other 

 birds : black swifts, nighthawks, and certain of the swallows, species 

 that are on the wing southward at the same time. Even when 

 migrating the playfulness of this little swift is seen, for often one 

 will pursue another of its kind. And on occasions we have seen it 

 make a dash at a black swift, or a nighthawk, though when this took 

 place no notice was taken of the act by either of these birds. 



"On one occasion in fall we observed a large number of Vaux's 

 swifts in flight whose actions were quite different. It was at the 

 west coast of this State, along the ocean beach. When first seen, 

 the swifts were 'milling' in the air within a narrow limit, the sight 

 bearing a resemblance to a swarm of bees about a hive. Again and 

 again this action was repeated. At times the birds would suddenly 

 scatter as if a wind had strewn them, but soon they reunited and 

 once more began to mill, though meanwhile the flock slowly drifted 

 southward and at last was lost to view. On this occasion in com- 

 pany with the Vaux's were a number of the black swifts. These 

 were at some height above the smaller swifts, and their graceful 

 circling flight was in marked contrast to that of the Vaux's." 



Winter. — The winter range of Vaux's swift is imperfectly known 

 but is supposed to be in Central America. An important addition to 

 our knowledge has been recently made by George H. Lowery, Jr., who 

 found this swift wintering on the campus of the Louisiana State Uni- 

 versity, East Baton Rouge Parish, La. He has kindly lent me his 

 unpublished manuscript on the subject, from which I quote as follows : 



"Swifts were first observed in Louisiana outside of the regular 

 seasons of occurrence during the winter of 1937-38, when two indi- 

 viduals were recorded almost daily from November through February. 

 One of them was captured and banded on February 16, 1938. 



"During November 1938 swifts were again noted in the same chim- 

 ney on the university campus. This time a larger number, 5 to 10, were 

 found. They were observed almost daily from November through 

 February. Six specimens were caught, five of which were banded and 

 released; the sixth was prepared as a study skin. Only after being 

 placed alongside specimens of O. pelagica in the Museum of Zoology 

 collection was it noted that the bird differed from that species. Being 

 smaller and paler, it was immediately suspected of being C. vauxi. 

 The question arose as to whether the five birds banded and released 

 were the same species as the one made into a skin. These were re- 

 captured on February 15, along with four additional unhanded birds, 



