172 LIFE niSTOKIES OF NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS. 



6i. Chordeiles acutipennis texensis Lawrence. 



TEXAN NIGHTHAWK. 



Chordeiles aciitipciniin var. texensis Baird, Brewer, and Ridgway, History of North 

 Aiiiericau BinLs, II, 1874, IOC. 



(Of. Hartert, Catalogue Birds British Museum, XVI, 192, (J16.) 

 (B 110, C 208, R 358, C 402, U 421.) 



CiEOGBAPHiCAi. RANGE: Soutliwesteni United States, from southei-n and western 

 Texas, southern New Mexico, and Arizona; north to latitude 38° in California (to San 

 Joaquin and Stanislaus counties), southern Nevada, and southern Utah; east (casually ?) 

 to southwestern Louisiana; soutli to Lower California and over the table- lands of north- 

 ern Mexico; in winter to Costa Rica and Veragua, Central America. 



Within the Last few years the range of the Texan Nighthawk in the United 

 States lias been greatly extended. In California it is now known to occur as far 

 north as San Joaquin and Stanislaus counties, in about latitude 38°, Mr. L. 

 Belding having observed about a dozen of these birds on June b, 1S!)1, at 

 Knight's Ferry, in the latter county, and one of these was secured bv hiiu. East 

 of the Sierra Nevadas this species was met Avith by Dr. C. Hart ]\Ierriam and 

 other members of his exploring party as far north as Bishop, in Inyo County, 

 (Jalifornia, as well as at several points in southern Nevada and in the lower Santa 

 Clara Valley, in Utah. In the latter valley Dr. Merriaiu found it Ijreeding near 

 St. George, securing a set of fresh eggs on May 13, LSyi. It appears to be 

 generally disti-il)uted throughout the arid desert regions of Arizona, and it is 

 common in suitable localities throughout this Territory as well as through the 

 southern portions of New Mexico, and it is also an abundant summer resident 

 in the southern ami western portions of Texas. Mr. E. A. Mcllhenny has taken 

 it in southwestern Louisiana, where it ])robably occurs only as a straggler. It 

 also a])pears. to be generally distributed throughout the greater part of Lower 

 California. 



Some of the habits of the Texan Nighthawk, the smallest representative of 

 this genus found within the United States, are very similar to those of its some- 

 what larger relative, the Western Nighthawk. Like the last-named s]iecies, it is 

 a very sociable bird at times; in suitable localities, for instance on the bottom 

 lands bordering some of the larger streams within its range, it is very abundant, 

 and I never saw so many Nighthawks anywhere as I did of this species one 

 evening while camped near a slough close to the Grila River, while in route from 

 Fort Yuma to old Fort McDowell, southwestern Arizona, in July, 1871. There 

 were certainly several hundred making their evening meal on the nvmierous 

 insects which abounded in that vicinity. Its flight is equally as graceful as 

 that of the other Nighthawks, but it rarely soai's as high as the foi-mer, and 

 generally skims just over the tops of tlie bushes or close to the surfsice of the 

 water. In fact, I have repeatedly seen them touch the surface, as if drinking or 



