484 BULLETIN 179, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM 



Ste. Marie, September 27. Ohio — Youngstown, September 27. Illi- 

 nois — Kantoul, September 19. Missouri — Concordia, October 6. 

 Tennessee — Athens, September 26. Mississippi — Biloxi, October 23. 

 Prince Edward Island — North Eiver, September 4. New Bruns- 

 wick — St. John, September 9. Maine — Phillips, September 9. Ver- 

 mont — ^Wells River, September 15. Massachusetts — ^Woods Hole, 

 September 28. Pemisylvania — State College, October 3. District 

 of Columbia — ^Washington, September 7. North Carolina — ^Lake 

 Eden, September 12. Alabama — Booth, September 20, Florida — 

 St. Augustine, November 11 ; Key West, November 27. One banded 

 (34-95949) at Dell Rapids, S. Dak., on June 14, 1937, was recaptured 

 at Ghent, W. Va., on July 16, 1937. 



Casual records. — A specimen was taken by a native on St. Paul 

 Island, Alaska, about June 10, 1918. 



Egg dates. — Arizona : 8 records, June 3 to August 10. 



California : 109 records, April 27 to July 5 ; 55 records, May 8 to 

 June 20, indicating the height of the season. 



Illinois : 16 records, May 20 to July 5 ; 8 records. May 22 to June 20. 



Massachusetts: 13 records. May 30 to June 20; 7 records, June 2 

 to 11. 



Pennsylvania : 10 records, May 31 to June 17. 



Texas: 60 records, April 15 to July 19; 30 records. May 6 to 

 June 12. 



PETROCHELIDON ALBIFRONS TACHINA Oberholser 



LESSER CLIFF SWALLOW 



HABITS 



Dr. H. C. Oberholser (1903), in naming this swallow, describes it 

 as similar to the northern cliff swallow but "decidedly smaller, the 

 forehead ochraceous instead of cream color." He says further that 

 it "is intermediate between limifrons [=alhifrons] and melanogas- 

 fra, approaching in size very close to the latter. In respect to the 

 color of the forehead, as well, its aberration from lunifrons is in the 

 direction of melanogaMra, with which also it may be found to inter- 

 grade. After due allowance has been made for individual variation 

 which, however, does not exist to an unusual degree, the characters 

 exhibited by this new race seem to be very constant, at least in the 

 considerable series available for examination." 



The "considerable series" he refers to seems to have consisted of 

 7 specimens of tachina and 8 of melanogastra., not a very impressive 

 number. Mr. Ridgway (1904) recognized both forms on what was 

 practically the same series, with one more tachina and two more 

 melanogaster { = melanogastra). These two forms are practically 



