COUCHS KINGBIKU 53 



is much like Cassin's on the upper parts, but the tail is browner in 

 Couch's and blacker in Cassin's. In Cassin's only a small part of 

 the chin is white, the throat and chest being extensively gray, "light 

 neutral gray" to "pale neutral gi'ay," and the rest of the under parts 

 are paler yellow, "lemon yellow" to "pinard yellow"; whereas in 

 Couch's the chin and wiiole throat are extensively white, and the 

 under parts are a deep, rich "lemon chrome" or "empire yellow," 

 slightly tinged with olive or olive-gray on the chest. These differ- 

 ences in color patterns should enable the observer to distinguish 

 any of the subspecies of melancholicus from vocifercms. 



DISrRIBUTION 



Range. — Lower Rio Grande Valley in Texas and northeastern 

 Mexico. 



While there are several races of this species in South and Central 

 America and in the West Indies, this is the only form that is a regular 

 visitor to the United States. Its range extends north to the Rio 

 Grande Valley in Texas (Lomita and Brownsville) ; and from this 

 district south through eastern IMexico; Nuevo Leon (Ceralvo, ISIonte- 

 rey, and Rio San Juan) ; Tamaulipas (Matamoros, Sierra Madre, 

 Aldama, Altamira, and Tampico) ; to Veracruz (Papantla, Jalapa, 

 and Orizaba). 



In winter it appears to withdraw entirely from the Texas area, 

 but at this season it is found in northern Neuvo Leon (Ceralvo) and 

 Tamaulipas (Matamoros). Early dates of spring arrival in Texas 

 are: Brownsville, March 12, and Hidalgo, March 21. Xo dates of 

 fall departure are available. 



Casual records. — A specimen of T. m. coucM taken at Kerrville, 

 Tex., on September 11, 1908, is the most northerly record for this 

 race. The west Mexican kingbird {T. m. occidentalis) has been 

 recorded twice in the United States: A specimen taken at Fort 

 Lowell, Ariz., on May 12, 1905, and one collected in Jefferson County, 

 Wash., on November 18, 1916. Another race of this species, known 

 as Lichtenstein's kingbird {T. m. chJoronotits) , also has been recorded 

 on two occasions at widely separated points. One was collected at 

 Scarborough, Maine, on October 31, 1915, and another was taken at 

 French's Beach, British Columbia, in February 1923. Reexamination 

 of the latter specimen would probably prove it to be the west 

 Mexican race, occidentalis. 



Egg dates. — Arizona : 2 records, IMay 11 and June 13. 



Mexico: 16 records, April 6 to July 28; 8 records, June 6 to 14, 

 indicating the height of the season. 



Texas: 5 records, May 7 to 21. 



324726—42 5 



