86 



I'HE OOLOGIST 



the possession of Mr. Macomber of 

 Murray, and on the 22nd of December 

 last, the writer paid him a visit for the 

 purpose of seeing the bird as well as 

 other "rare takes" which he has, and I 

 felt well repaid for my walk of four 

 miles from the Holley depot through 

 a thickening snow storm to his home. 



It would prove interesting and in- 

 structive to learn of other records of 

 the occurrence of Uria lomvta in West- 

 ern New York, if other records there 

 are, in order that we may more nearly 

 know of just how frequent occurrence 

 it may be here. 



It would seem that it is cnly during 

 the past few years that this Guillemot 

 has extended its wanderings into this 

 section. 



It is called Thick-billed Guillemot 

 and Arr, and Mr. L. S. Foster of New 

 York, upon whom I recently had the 

 pleasure of calling, informs me that on 

 Long Island, the bird is commonly 

 called "Crow Guillemot," an epithet 

 which can be fully appreciated when 

 we observe the head of Brunnich's 

 Murre, for the form and shape of its 

 head is very much like that of the com- 

 mon Crow. The resemblance is marked. 



Neil F. Posson, 

 Feb. 9, 1898. Medina, N. Y. 



Additional Notes on Road-Runner. 



On pages 78-9 of the Oologist, Vol. 

 XIV, No. 8, issued in August of the 

 past year, were published a few desul- 

 tory remarks relative to the niditication 

 of the Road-runner and it was with gen- 

 uine surprise that we noted the fact 

 that our name was subscribed thereto. 

 Retrospection, however, has convinced 

 us that we are indeed the culprit. If 

 our memory is good, that paper was 

 written six or seven years ago, and 

 why Editor Lattin finally liberated it 

 from its cell in the file of rejected mat- 

 ter, we are at quite a loss to know. It 

 was by reason, no doubt, of a dearth of 



superior material, yet its publication 

 has elated us to such a degree that we 

 now make a few additional remarks, 

 which, provided they are accorded a 

 like deference, will be brought to light 

 at some 'Period during the first quarter 

 of the ensuing century. 



Since the writing of that sketch the 

 hieroglyphics in those sections of our 

 note books allotted to the fleet-footed 

 O. 'calijornicanus have been augment- 

 ed considerably. And furthermore in 

 consideration of the fact that the time 

 has come when most any old thing 

 may, with impunity, make uglzfaces 

 at Nancy Hanks we doubt not it wouid 

 be wise .to substitute the name of Star 

 Pointer or Joe Patchen in lieu of 

 Nancy's in the sixth line of our former 

 endeavor. 



So far as our information goes, the 

 Road-runner is very generally diffused 

 over all sections of our state with prob- 

 ably the exception of the most northern 

 counties, but we have never known it 

 to exist in such amazing exuberance as 

 it does in the most southern districts. 

 In south Texas chaparal regions, few 

 birds are more frequently found than 

 the Paisano, by which appellation it is 

 locally known, and which in English 

 signifies, a country man. However, 

 they are not gregarious and we have 

 seldom if ever seen more than half a 

 dozen in company. 



The diet of the Road-runner appears 

 to be a vexata qucestio, some imputing 

 to him the crime of cannibalism— claim- 

 ing that small chicks and the young 

 hopefuls of small birds are to him a 

 favorite entre. A previous writer in 

 the Oologist asseverates that he has 

 personally witnessed the immolation of 

 immature Mockingbirds upon the altar 

 of the Road-runner's voracity and furth- 

 er states, but does not give his author- 

 ity for so doing, that he is also a de- 

 spoiler of the chicken-house. Vide, Vol. 

 XI, No. 8, p. 265. We will accept for 

 true his first statement because he has 



