366 General Notes. ["£," 



k 



Oct. 



examined have each seven pairs of ribs, and it seems hardly probable 

 that these specimens, collected at different times and localities, should all 

 be abnormal. The peculiar interest attached to the possession of seven 

 pairs of ribs by a Swift lies in the fact that no known Passerine bird has, 

 normally, more than six pairs of ribs, while such Hummingbirds as have 

 been examined have eight pairs. Cypseloides is also peculiar in its skull, 

 as has been pointed out bv Dr. Shufeldt, the vomer not being expanded dis- 

 tally as in the other Cjpselidae. The Tree Swifts have a somewhat similar 

 vomer, but these, to my mind, form a separate and well marked family, as 

 set forth in 'The Auk' for January, 1SS9. — Frederic A. Lucas, Wash- 

 ington, D. C. 



An Attractive Addition to the Avifauna of the United States. — Icterus 

 gularis yucatanensis von Berlepsch. — Mr. E. A. Mcllhenny recently 

 sent me for identification a skin of a handsome Oriole which proves to be 

 this subspecies and which he kindly presented to the collection of the 

 United States National Museum here. He shot the bird on June 3, 1893, 

 on Avery's Island, New Iberia Parish, Louisiana, from a flock of four; 

 and he writes me that although these birds were cpute tame he only shot 

 the one in hopes that the remaining ones would bring others there. His 

 attention was first called to them by their unfamiliar whistle, which is a 

 soft flute-like note expressed by the word 'whae' about as well as any- 

 thing; this is repeated from time to time as the birds move from limb to 

 limb in search of food. On disecting the specimen he found a number 

 of small green caterpillars and several spiders, but the principal food 

 seemed to consist of the small purple figs, which were just ripe. While 

 in search of food they move about exactly as the Baltimore Oriole does, 

 swinging from slender twigs head downward, looking under limbs for 

 insects, and moving about continually. He observed the remaining three 

 birds again on June 5 in some fig trees in the plantation garden. 



Although this beautiful Oriole may be an irregular, it appears to be 

 sometimes a common summer visitor along the Gulf coast of Louisana, 

 and less frequently perhaps of Mississippi as well, as the following notes 

 will show; and it seems even probable that it breeds occasionally within 

 our borders. Mr. Mcllhenny had already obtained a specimen of this 

 Oriole two years previously and sent me the following extracts, relating 

 to its occurrence, copied from his note-book. 



"May 17, 1891. John Gofihey brought me today a beautiful bird that 

 he killed in the swamp back of the sugarhouse. It is undoubtedly an 

 Oriole, but one I have never seen before. Owing to the poor condition 

 of the plumage, I did not make a skin of it. The markings are: head, 

 breast, under and upper tail-coverts, orange; wings black with orange 

 markings at their base ; back black from base of neck to upper tail-coverts. 

 It is a male, and much larger than the Baltimore Oriole. On dissection 

 the only food found was a few insects and three small caterpillars. 



"August 3, 1892. Today I went out to Mr. Herters's rice field to try and 

 get some of the birds I hear feed there. I met J. Mason and induced him 



