VoLXVIin General Note-:. I I •? 



igoi J O 



Xema sabinii. — October 7, 1900, while shooting ducks along the banks of 

 the Rio Grande, a small flight of gulls was observed, the birds passing just 

 out of gunshot directly down the stream, near enough to note the pres- 

 ence of a dark collar-like marking upon the fore-breast. The next day, a 

 pair of wings was brought to me by a local gunner taken from a gull 

 shot the preceding day from a small flock which wheeled in over a small 

 pond. These, -sent to Dr. Ridgwaj', were identified by him as belonging 

 to Xema sabinii, the first record of this wandering species for New Mex- 

 ico being thus made; and I doubt not that the birds observed by myself 

 the day before were of the same species. 



Bubo virginianus arcticus. — On November 18, Mr. C. M. Barber dis- 

 covered a freshly killed owl hanging to a tree at Bernalillo, N. Mex., where 

 it had been recently hung, presumably by some gunner. Presenting it to 

 me the next dav, I was surprised to find the bird a handsome example of 

 the Arctic Horned Owl {Bubo virginianus arcticus). The entire middle 

 belly and abdomen, including vent and under tail- and wing-coverts, and a 

 large mass covering the throat and fore breast are pure immaculate white ; 

 the entire under parts are largely of that color, the markings comparatively 

 few and distinct; the face is nearly pure white as well as the entiie 

 feathering of the lower limbs, and concealed white occupies a large 

 portion of the broad webs of the flight feathers. 



Comparison with examples of B. v. subarcticus and of var. saturatiis^ 

 both of this region, betrays marked distinction. 



That these three Horned Owls should occur here, together, is not a 

 little remarkable. All occupy the lower elevations in the colder weather, 

 i. e., counting the arcticus example cited. But during the breeding season, 

 saturatus'\% found as the bird of the higher timber belts, and subarcticus 

 dw"ells lower. 



The presence of the single specimen of arcticus may be variously sug- 

 gested. The bird may live near the timber limits of the highest ranges, 

 this specimen having been driven lower or wandered there. It may have, 

 also, wandered from the northern regions. Hardly could it have been 

 driven across the continent by inclement weather, but readily could have 

 been forced to the river valley by the fierce storm which raged for three 

 days, beginning with its capture, and which piled the ranges with snow. 

 — Francis J. Birtwell, Albuquerque, N. AT. 



