no. 1840. REVISION OF HAIRY WOODPECKERS— OBERHOLSER. 599 



Virginia; and central Virginia. In winter it occurs south to Raleigh, 

 central North Carolina; Wheatland, southwestern Indiana; and 

 Mount Carmel, southeastern Illinois. 



This, the first form of the species to receive a binomial name, is 

 really an intermediate between the small Florida Dryobates villosus 

 audubonii, on the one hand, and the large Canadian Dryobates 

 villosus septentrionalis, on the other, from both of which it differs 

 chiefly in size. The amount of difference between birds from Florida 

 and those from Mackenzie, Canada, is, however, very great, and it 

 seems much better to recognize three forms than to divide all the 

 birds from the wide middle area between only two — a large northern 

 and a small southern race. Further division of these eastern birds does 

 not, however, after careful study, appear to be advisable. Specimens 

 from the States of New York, Pennsylvania, and Maryland, which 

 are of practically the same size, seem most satisfactorily to represent 

 the middle race, Dryobates villosus villosus, the type of which came 

 from New Jersey; and these have, therefore, been taken to establish 

 the standard of size. With this criterion, fairly satisfactory ranges 

 may be worked out, which, in a general way, are seen to correspond 

 to the currently accepted life zones. 



Examples from southern Ontario and from New Brunswick 

 average noticeably larger than those from Pennsylvania and New 

 York, the difference being about 4 mm. in the length of the whig, 

 but they are evidently referable to D. v. villosus. Two breeding 

 birds from southeastern Maine are large enough for Dryobates villosus 

 septentrionalis (wings, respectively, 129 and 130 mm.), but sur- 

 rounded, as they are, by smaller birds, it seems best to consider them 

 abnormal individuals of D. v. villosus. Specimens from western 

 North Carolina and middle and eastern Tennessee average smaller 

 (2 to 3 mm. in length of wing) than typical D. v. villosus, and have 

 also somewhat less white on the wing-coverts, but are nevertheless 

 nearer this form than to Dryobates villosus audubonii. 



The hairy woodpecker was first described by Linnaeus as Picus 

 villosus, 1 and based upon Kalm, 2 Catesby, 3 and Brisson. 4 Kalm's 

 bird is from New Jersey, and represents the middle eastern race; 

 Catesby's from South Carolina, and thus the form now called Dryo- 

 bates villosus audubonii; while Brisson's is a mixture of the two, but 

 applies chiefly and properly to the former. The first author to re- 

 strict the name villosus was Swainson, 5 who described the small south- 

 ern bird as Picus audubonii, 5 and called the more northern form Picus 

 villosus. This arrangement has been generally followed by subse- 

 quent authors ; and there is no reason why it should now be changed. 



i Syst. Nat., ed. 12, vol. 1, 1766, p. 175. « Ornith., vol. 4, 1760, p. 48. 



2 Resa. Norra Amer., vol 3, 1761, p. 43. 6 Fauna Bor.-Amer., vol. 2, 1831 (1832), p. 306. 



» Nat. Hist. Carolina, vol. 1, 1731, p. 19, pi. 19. 



