204 Faxon, Abbot's Drazvings of Georgia Birds. [-July 



According to general testimony, the diminution of late years 

 in the numbers of the ducks is very marked. Mr. Bassett, how- 

 ever, sees and takes in Nippenickett a larger number and greater 

 variety of ducks of late years than ever before. The causes of 

 the change in this case are not known, and it may be left to the 

 reader to speculate upon them. 



In all there are 28 species of clucks attributed to Massachusetts. 

 We of course do not consider the Labrador and St. Domingo 

 Ducks as occurring in the State. All of these 28 have occurred 

 within comparatively recent years in Plymouth County. Twenty- 

 four of them have been taken on fresh water. Barrow's Golden- 

 eye would doubtless be added to this list, were the facts known, 

 leaving only three of the ducks which, when with us, are strictly 

 maritime, the two Eiders and the Harlequin. Of the 28 I should 

 class seven only as decidedly rare, — the Ring-neck, Gadwall, 

 Shoveller, Harlequin, King Eider, Barrow's Golden-eye, and 

 Canvas-back. 



JOHN ABBOT'S DRAWINGS OF THE BIRDS OF 

 GEORGIA. 



BY WALTER FAXON. 



John Abbot's illustrations of the Lepidoptera of Georgia, 

 edited by Sir James Edward Smith and published in two folio 

 volumes at London in 1797, have made his name familiar to 

 entomologists, but few ornithologists are aware that Abbot, 

 during his sojourn in Georgia, made a series of colored drawings 

 of the birds of that State. The Boston Society of Natural 

 History has long possessed many of Abbot's unpublished drawings 

 of Georgian insects 1 , and there has lately come to light, in the 



'These are bound in two volumes, one comprising 174 plates given to the 

 Society by Asa Gray who received them from J. E. Gray of the British 

 Museum, the other comprising 193 plates purchased of Dr. Oemler of 

 Georgia. 



