336 Wetmore, Birds of Desecheo Island, P. R. [j^y 



my camp was more or less of a scavenger and ate bits of meat left 

 on the fish bones that I threw out. An Anolis intermediate in its 

 characters between Anolis cristatellus of Porto Rico and A. monensis 

 of Mona Island was abundant and several specimens were pre- 

 served. 



Bird Life. 



In his account of the birds of Porto Rico, Mr. Bowdish (1902-03) 

 gives eight species found on Desecheo Island. I have added three 

 more to this number, raising the known list to eleven species. One 

 of the additions, the Scaled Pigeon, is included on the authority 

 of the fishermen who were with me. The larger part of the species 

 found here are forms that breed habitually on similar small isolated 

 islands. These are the Boobies, Terns and Man-o'-War Birds. 

 Among others, the Zenaida Dove is apparently resident. Only 

 one passerine bird was found, the Pearly-eyed Thrasher, a species 

 that in Porto Rico is very rare on the main island but is abundant 

 on the small islands around it. The absence of Cccreba portoricensis 

 is notable as this species is widespread in its occurrence. During 

 the winter season it is probable that a number of migrant land and 

 water birds stop here for short periods, and it is to these transients 

 that we must look for other additions to the avifauna of the island. 

 Bowdish (1900, p. 120) on his first visit says that he thought he 

 heard the note of Vireosyha calidris but was uncertain. The 

 "Sooty Tern" that he records (1900, p. 119) is AnoiXs slolidus, and 

 not Sterna fuscata. 



Bibliography. 



There are three papers that make direct reference to the birds of Desecheo 

 Island. Stahl and Gundlach both mention species that were reported to 

 occur on this island but neither of these authors makes definite statements 

 concerning its avifauna. The papers mentioned follow: 



Bowdish, B. S. 



1900. A Day on De Cicheo Island, Oologist, 1900, pp. 117-120. 

 1902-03. Birds of Porto Rico. Auk, 1902, pp. 356-366, and 1903, 

 pp. 10-23. 

 Wetmore, A. 



1916. Birds of Porto Rico, U. S. Dept. Agric. Bull. 326, 1916, pp. 1- 

 140, 10 plates (including map). 



