150 Anthony, The Large-billed Sparrow. [\prh 



in September on all of the coast islands that I have visited in that 

 season from San Clemente south as far as Natividad, and including 

 Cerros and Los Benitos. On this last is found a subspecies (P. r. 

 sanctorum) that no doubt was derived from rostratus that in the past 

 lingered on this island to nest and in time became resident. The 

 Large-billed and San Benito Sparrows are equally abundant along 

 the beaches, gleaning a livelihood from beds of stranded kelp, over 

 which they skurry like mice in search of insects and small marine 

 life. 



Nests of sanctorum were found by both R. C. McGregor and 

 myself, one being in a low bush about one foot from the ground, and 

 the others well hidden in shallow depressions in the soil and over- 

 hung by vegetation, very similar in fact to the nests of beldingi, 

 except that the Benito Islands offer no tide flats or marsh lands and 

 sanctorum is obliged to nest on dry ground. 



Nor does rostratus nest on any of the islands of the west coast of 

 Lower California, as my visits to those islands have been frequent, 

 and I have found the species as a winter visitant only. 



The ocean beaches as far as Cape St. Lucas offer also winter 

 range for rostratus, but while they are by no means rare on both 

 sandy and rocky shores, they are nowhere really abundant away 

 from the tide flats of the bays. 



So far as an inland breeding range is to be considered, I have 

 never seen a Large-billed Sparrow over half a mile from tide water, 

 and one that wanders over a few hundred yards from the tide flats 

 or beach is at once noticed as out of place by those who are familiar 

 with the species, which is, according to my experience, strictly 

 littoral. 



So much for a few of the places that, for the purposes of this 

 article, it may be considered that the species does not breed. As 

 for a breeding range in a distant or southern country I will pres- 

 ently show that such is at least highly improbable. 



San Ramon is a Mexican ranch on the coast of Lower California 

 about 25 miles north'of San Quintin Bay. Mr. Grinnell has quoted 

 me as reporting a nesting rostratus from this point but would seem 

 to doubt the validity of the record. At the present writing I have 

 a very distinct recollection of the bird mentioned and a glance at 

 the conditions surrounding that region may throw some light on 



