BIRDS OF THE TKES MARIAS ISLANDS. 37 



numeious. Two specimeus were taken ou Maria Madre, May 7, aud 

 a single specimen was shot ou Isabel Island, April 22; the latter was 

 undoubtedly a straggler from the mainland, since Isabel is a waterless 

 island. 



Columbigallina passerina pallescens (Baird). Mexican Ground Dove. 



These pretty little doves were common on Maria Madre and Maria 

 Magdalena, but were most numerous about old fields and in the settle- 

 ment on the former island. The series of specimens taken on Maria 

 Madre apj)ears to be identical with the birds of the adjacent mainland ; 

 seven males from the islands average as follows: Wing, 87.4; tail, 01.8; 

 culmen, 11.6; tarsus, 16.6. 

 Cathartes aura (Linn.). Turkey Vulture. 



Generally distributed, and very common about the settlement on 

 Maria Madre. 



Buteo borealis fumosus Nelson. Tres Marias Red-tailed Hawk. 



Buteo horcalis var. moiitaua Grayson, Proc. Boston Soc. Nat. Hist., XIV, p. 26,S, 1)S71 

 (part). 



Buteo borealis var. calurus Lawr., Mem. Boston Soc. Nat. Hist., II, j). 301, 1871 

 (part). 



Buteo borealis fumosus Nelson, Proc. Biol. Soc. Washington, XII, p. 7, 1898. 

 Colonel Grayson records this as a common species. We found a 

 few living along the canyons that score the slopes of Maria Madre. 

 They were very sparsely distributed and only some twelve or fifteen 

 individuals were noted; two or three were seen on Maria Magdalena 

 and none on Maria Cleofa. They were not at all shy, and whenever 

 found perched on a tree were readily approached within gunshot. 

 They feed mainly upon iguanas and rabbits, both of which are common 

 on the two larger islands. Nothing distinctive was noted about the 

 habits of these hawks. They are uniform in color, and differ more from 

 the mainland forms than does B. horeaH.s nocorroeiisis, although the 

 latter is from an island much farther out at sea. 



The adult female of fumosus has some heavy shaft streaks of dark 

 brown on the chest, but these are not heavy enough to form a well- 

 defined dark area as is often the case in calurus. 



Description of an im mature male ( ?) from Maria Madre : Upper surface 

 almost uniform black isli brown; tail mainly of same color, but crossed 

 by nine narrow, irregular lighter bands; a light area ou the throat, 

 where the feathers have narrow blackish sliaft lines and broad, dull 

 white borders: breast and sides of neck dnll, dark brown, with (hill, 

 rusty edgings to feathers on latter area ; middle of breast paler ; feathers 

 on lower breast and lianks blackish brown, with irregular whitish spots ; 

 abdomen and lower tail coverts dnll brownish, paler than Hanks, with 

 pale butty barring; some feathers of tiliia butty or heavily barred with 

 butty, but mostly like those of lower breast. 



