ARIZONA MEADOWLARK 83 



DISTRIBUTION 



The Rio Grande meadowlark is resident from southeastern Texas 

 (Eagle Pass, Port Lavaca) to northern Coahuila, Nuevo Leon, and 

 northern Tamaulipas. 



STURNELLA MAGNA LILIANAE Oberholser 



Arizona Meadowlark 

 HABITS 



In naming this western subspecies, Dr. Oberholser (1930) saj^s that 

 it is "similar to Sturnella magna hoopesi, of central southern Texas, 

 but wing longer; other dimensions smaller, particularly the feet; 

 upper parts much paler, more grayish; the dark bars on wings and 

 tail still narrower, and even more disconnected; under parts averaging 

 still more deeply golden yellow." 



He gives as its range, "central western Texas and southern New 

 Mexico, west to central and southern Arizona, and south to Sonora 

 and Chihuahua." 



And adds that "this new bird is most closely allied to Sturnella 

 magna hoopesi, described from Brownsville, Tex., and, in fact, is its 

 western representative. 



"It is strikingly similar to Sturnella neglecta, more so, indeed, than 

 is any of the other subspecies of Sturnella magna. Meadowlarks from 

 Arizona and New Mexico have commonly been referred to Sturnella 

 magna hoopesi, but comparison of a series shows at once that they 

 are different." 



The race was named in honor of Mrs. Lillian Hanna Baldwin 

 (Mrs. S. Prentiss Baldwin), who presented the Cleveland Museum 

 with a collection of birds, including the type of this subspecies. 



We found meadowlarks fairly common on the grassy plains and 

 low foothills of the mountains in southeastern Arizona, but found no 

 nests. They could easily be distinguished from the western meadow- 

 larks by their songs, and were undoubtedly of this race. Nothing 

 peculiar was noted as to their haunts and habits, which apparently 

 resembled those of the other southern races. 



DISTRIBUTION 



The Rio Grande meadowlark breeds from northwestern and cen- 

 tral Arizona (Juniper Mountains, Springerville) east to southern New 

 Mexico (Gila River, Hachita), and western Texas (El Paso, Chisos 

 Mountains), and south to northeastern Sonora and northern Chi- 

 huahua. It winters north^to central Arizona. 



