﻿Aruba, Curacao, and Bonaire. 327 



1. Margarops fuscatus (Vieill.). 



This typical West-Indian bird was common in the gardens 

 near Fontein, on the north-east coast of Bonaire, but I saw 

 it nowhere else. I have compared my skins with specimens 

 from the Bahamas, Haiti, Porto Rico, and St. Thomas, and 

 am not able to distinguish between them. My specimens 

 are somewhat pale, but all are in, more or less, worn plumage, 

 and there are quite similar ones from the Greater Antilles 

 in the British Museum. 



These " Tjutjubis " are peculiar birds, running and hopping 

 quickly through the foliage, and sometimes making a great 

 noise by chattering, warbling, and whistling together. They 

 are, I believe, entirely fruit-eaters, for I did not find any- 

 thing else in their stomachs, and are destructive to the fruits 

 of the date-palms, of the Carica papaya, and other trees. 

 They are so fond of the papaya-fruits that they used to come 

 through the lattice of the window into the room when we 

 had these fruits on the table and soon made away with them. 

 The native name is " Tjutjubi spagnol" 



Iris yellowish white in adult birds, brown in the young 

 ones ; bill brownish horn-colour ; feet light brown. 



The occurrence of this species here is remarkable, especially 

 as another subspecies, Margarops fuscatus densirostris 

 (Vieill.), is found on the Lesser Antilles. 



2. MlMUS GILVUS ROSTRATUS, RidgW. 



Common. 



3. Dendrceca rufopileata, Ridgw. 

 Very common. 



4. Certhiola uropygialis (Berl.). 

 Extremely common. 



5. Ammodromus savannarum (6m.). 



Common in grassy places on " Aruba-Estate/' near 

 Kralendijk, on Bonaire. It is called "Raton de cero," or 

 " Para de cero'* A series of skins of this species agree best 

 with specimens from Jamaica, which are typical A. savan- 

 narum, and cannot be separated from them. The wings of 

 the Aruban specimens measure 2*05 to 22 inches, tarsus 1*7. 



[39] 



