LARK BUNTING 655 



The Lark Buntings or White- wings, black in the breeding plumage and brown 

 in winter, were first seen in northwestern New Mexico by Mr. Hollister on July 22, 

 1905. * * * He writes regarding them: "The males were in excellent black 

 plumage, but I think they were fresh arrivals from the north, although it may 

 seem early for migration." Three years previous, in the southeastern part of 

 the State, he had found them five weeks later (September 2-3, 1902). * * * At 

 that time they were all "in brown plumage." 



Previous to August 8, 1908, Major Goldman writes, "When we entered the 

 Animas Mountains from Animas Valley none of the Ijirds had been seen. ^A'hen 

 we returned to the valley on August 9, we found them numerous in large [black] 

 flocks and they were seen every day until I left the valley, August 19. They 

 were common in flocks, apparently consisting almost entirely of black males, 

 at Socorro, August 11-24, 1909." The thousands found by Doctor Dearborn 

 at Carlsbad, August 1-14, 1910, were also mainly in the breeding plumage, 

 although beginning to molt. 



Near Las Vegas, from August 29 to September 1, 1903, small flocks were 

 frequently seen passing over our camp, while numbers were flushed from the 

 fences. At this time they were all in the brown plumage. Near Espauola 

 early in September, 1906, they were also numerous in the fields and along the 

 roads. In one place perhaps three hundred were seen on a wire fence, mostly 

 in the brown plumage. 



Winter. — The lark buntings, having withdrawn from their breeding 

 range, spend the winter south from southern Cahfornia, southern 

 Nevada, central Arizona, southern New Mexico, and north-central 

 Texas to southern Baja California, Jalisco, Guana, Vato, and Hildalgo. 

 On their winter range the birds forage in sizeable flocks in the open 

 fields or out on the desert plains and plateaus. 



Dawson (1923) says of the winter habits of the lark bunting: 

 "Winter flocks may be composed of both sexes in equal or very 

 unequal proportions. They feed quietly upon the ground in the 

 open, whether along a river bottom or over the baldest desert. The 

 Lark Buntings are not averse to civihzation, and they sometimes 

 frequent Jvlexican dooryards or barnyards with much the freedom 

 and something of the manner of blackbirds." 



Distribution 



Range. — High plains of the southern prairie provinces south to 

 central Mexico. 



Breeding range. — The lark bunting breeds from west central Mon- 

 tana (Missoula), southern Alberta (Waterton Lakes Park, Castor), 

 southern Saskatchewan (Skull Creek, Indian Head), southwestern 

 Manitoba (Brandon), southeastern North Dakota (VaUey City), and 

 southwestern Minnesota (Otter Tail and Jackson counties, irregularly) 

 south to central southern Montana (Bozeman, Billings) and, east of 

 the Rocky Mountains, to southeastern New Mexico (Vaughn Loving- 

 ton), northern Texas, north central Oklahoma (Grant County), 

 and south central and central eastern Kansas (St. John, Rantoul); 



e4ft-737 — 68— pt. 2 5 



