FAUNA OF AMERICA — CLARK 293 



The insects have increased greatly in variety. Many are from 

 the Old World, but many are typically American, particularly toward 

 the south. These last include two types of swallowtail butterflies of 

 strictly North American groups, Papilio glaucus and its relatives, and 

 P. troilus. j 



South of southeastern Canada, the Great Lakes region, and New 

 England many additional animal types appear. With Old World 

 affinities are the pikas and badgers in the w^est and the generally 

 distributed moles; strictly American are the opossum and various 

 small hares in the east, the large jack rabbits, prairie dogs, ground 

 squirrels, kangaroo rats, and other rodents in the west. Strictly North 

 American are the pronghorn {Antilocapra) of the Western Plains, 

 the gray fox {Urocyon)^ and in the northwestern United States the 

 sewellel (Aplodojitia) . Still farther south are the generally dis- 

 tributed spotted skunks, and in the Southwest the tropical armadillo, 

 peccary, jaguar, ocelot, and cacomixl {Bussariscus) ^ in addition to 

 most of the types found farther north. 



Among the birds a number of northern kinds range down to Georgia 

 in the mountains in the east and to Mexico in the west, and some in the 

 lowlands to Florida and the Gulf. Many other bird types appear, 

 chiefly in the lowlands, such as various rails, the white pelican (in 

 the west), egrets, herons, doves and pigeons, burrowing owls, pileated 

 and other woodpeckers, cuckoos, including the western roadrunner 

 {Geococcyx)^ numerous wrens, the cardinal, towhee, grosbeaks, the 

 indigobird and other finches, some brilliaixtly colored, swifts, whip- 

 poorwills and other goatsuckers, and especially representatives of the 

 exclusively American families Odontophoridae (American quails), 

 Meleagrididae (turkeys), Cathartidae (American vultures, including 

 the giant California condor), Icteridae (American orioles and black- 

 birds and the meaclowlarks, bobolink, and parasitic cowbirds), 

 Thraupidae (tanagers), Vireonidae (vireos), Mimidae (mockingbird, 

 thrashers, and catbird), and Tyrannidae (American kingbirds and 

 flycatchers). Farther south are additional types — the wood ibis 

 {Mycteria)^ the only American stork, snakebird {Anhinga), brown 

 pelican, more finches; in the west several hummingbirds; and the 

 American family Aramidae (wood rails or courlans) . In the extreme 

 south are a few tropical types such as the white ibis, roseate spoonbill, 

 caracaras, kites, and some tropical terns. 



Toward the south the reptiles increase rapidly in number, first the 

 snakes and the turtles, later the lizards, the last especially in the west. 

 The reptiles are quite different from those of Europe and northern 

 Asia and largely different from those of South America. IMost note- 

 worthy are the snapping turtles, the common snapper reaching 75 

 pounds and the more southern alligator snapper 150 pounds ; the rattle- 



