Todd: The Birds of the Isle of Pines. 237 



84. Chordeiles virginianus minor (Cabanis). Cuban Nighthawk. 

 (Plate XXVI.) 



Chordeiles minor Cory, Cat. W. Indian Birds, 1892, 105 (I. of Pines, in geog. distr.). 



— GuNDLACH, Orn. Cubana, 1895, loi (I- of Pines). 

 Chordeiles virginianus minor Bangs & Zappey, Am. Nat., XXXIX, 1905, 203 



(Los Almacigos, Santa Fe, and El Hospital; plum.; habits). — Read, Oologist, 



XXVIII, 191 1, 12 (I. of Pines). — Read, I. of Pines News, VI, Jan. 3, 1914 



(habits). — Oberholser, Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., No. 86, 1914, 82 (Nueva Gerona, 



El Hospital, and Los Almacigos; meas. ; crit.). — Ridgway, Bull. U. S. Nat. 



Mus., No. 50, VI, 1914, 576 (I. of Pines, in geog. distr.). 

 "Nighthawk" Read, Forest and Stream, LXXIII, 1909, 75 (I. of Pines). — 



Read, Oologist, XXVI, 1909, 75 (I. of Pines). 

 "Antillean Nighthawk" Read, Oologist, XXVIII, 191 1, 7 (I. of Pines; migr.), 



II (Nuevas River), 113 (West McKinley); XXX, 1913, 124 (Pine River), 125 



(Santa Barbara; migr.), 168 (Los Indies). 

 "Cuban Nighthawk" Read, Oologist, XXX, 1913, 131 (I. of Pines, summer; 



migr.). 

 "West Indian Nighthawk" Read, Oologist, XXX, 1913, 159-162, 4 pis. (Santa 



Barbara; figs, nest and eggs). 



Three specimens: Bibijagua, McKinley, and Los Indios. 



This is the race of Chordeiles virginianus which is a summer resident 

 in the Greater Antilles. It may readily be distinguished by its small 

 size, and is furthermore peculiar in having a rufescent phase of plumage 

 entirely independent of age, sex, or season. In the present series there 

 is one female in this rufescent phase, and another more grayish, also 

 one male in the gray phase. The significance of this dichromatism is 

 no more understood than in other cases in which it occurs. Mr. 

 Oberholser has given reasons for believing that C. v. minor is probably 

 the nearest living representative of the " original-stock " form, and 

 it is certainly a very strongly marked subspecies, if not indeed worthy 

 of higher rank. 



A very common bird in the Isle of Pines, the generally open character 

 of much of the country being very well suited to its needs. In its 

 habits it closely resembles the northern form, flying mostly in the 

 morning and evening in dry weather, but throughout the day during 

 rainy weather, at which times scores may be in sight at once. It is a 

 summer resident only, but arrives very early, Mr. Link's first specimen 

 having been taken February 6, while Mr. Read recorded it in 191 2 on. 

 March 14. It lays its eggs on the ground in open situations, and the- 

 young are hatched in May. Plate XXVI shows the incubating bird,, 

 and is reproduced from a photograph made by Mr. Read, a cut pre- 



