1 6 THE AMERICAN MUSEUM JOURNAL 



TWO NEW BIRD GROUPS. 



HE most recent additions to the splendid series 

 of groups of North American birds which the 

 Museum owes to the generosity of a number of 

 contributors to a fund designed especially for 

 exhibits of this nature represent the White- 

 crowned Pigeon and the Ani. 



The White-crowned Pigeon is a West Indian species which 

 visits the Florida Keys in great numbers to nest in the smaller 

 islets. In the Bahamas it is also migratory, appearing in May 

 and frequenting the same localities year after year. 



This Pigeon belongs Xo the same genus (Cohimba) as our 

 dovecote Pigeon, and it is quite probable that in the warmer 

 parts of the world it could be domesticated. 



The flesh of this handsome bird is most palatable, and laige 

 numbers are annually killed for food in both the Florida Keys 

 and Bahamas. Unfortunately, this great destruction of life 

 occurs during the nesting season, but the fact that the birds are 

 present only at that time has prevented, in the Bahamas, at 

 least, the passage of laws prohibiting their killing. 



The Ani is a species of Cuckoo common throughout the 

 greater part of tropical America and occasionally reaching 

 southern Florida. This bird is exhibited because of its remark- 

 able nesting habits. 



It does not mate in pairs, as do most birds, but the four to a 

 dozen or more birds composing a flock live together throughout 

 the year, building a common nest in which all the females lay 

 their eggs. Twenty-one eggs have been found in a single nest, 

 but the number laid by each individual is unknown. All the 

 members of this singular family seem to take part in the duties 

 of incubation and care of the young. The nesting season ex- 

 tends over several months, and fresh eggs may be found in a 

 nest which contains young birds. It appears to be the universal 

 custom of Anis to line their nests with fresh green leaves. 



Little has been written about the nesting habits of the 

 White-crowned Pigeon or Ani, and so far as we are aware the 

 groups above-mentioned are unique. 



