14 BoWDisH, Birds of Porto Rico. \\xci 



level pastures. It was built among thick bushes, in a clump of twigs 

 against the body of a small tree, eight feet from the ground and well con- 

 cealed. The female was so shy that I hardly had a glimpse of her, and 

 though I went away and waited several hours she apparentlj^ did not 

 return. The nest was built of weed and vine stems, dead leaves and skel- 

 etons of leaves, and was well domed. It measured 6.25 X 3.00 inches in 

 diameter, with a depth of 7 inches to the top of the doine, 3 to the lower 

 edge of the entrance, and 2 inches inside. It contained three eggs of a 

 decided grosbeak type, in size and appearance much like eggs of the 

 Rose-breast. 



The females of this species are much shyer and more seldom seen than 

 the males. Oct 25, 1901, I shot, near Mayaguez, a female of this species 

 which closely resembled a male, but the black was a little more dingy ; the 

 ovaries contained an egg that would have been deposited the next day. 

 This would seem to indicate that they may sometimes rear two broods in 

 a season. 



66. Tiaris bicolor omissa. Grassqiut. — An abundant bird in all of 

 the localities which I visited except Mona and Decicheo Islands. I have 

 already dealt with this bird at such length that I will here only refer 

 the reader to ' The Osprey,' Vol. I (new series), p. 45. 



67. Tiaris olivacea bryanti. "Bryant's Grassqliit. — I did not find 

 this bird as abundant anywhere as the preceding; although not at all rare 

 about San Juan and on the Island of Vieques, it was scarce in the vicin- 

 ity of Mayaguez and Aguadilla. The song is somewhat more musical than 

 that of T. b. omissa ; the other notes are much the same. I failed to find 

 a nest, but a female shot at A'ieques, Jan. 30, 1899, would have deposited 

 an &^'g the next day. 



68. Nesospingus speculiferus. — Although I made special search for 

 this Tanager I failed to find it. A three days' trip into the mountains 

 about Las Marias was made especialh' in search of this species but with- 

 out success. It is strictly a bird of the mountains. 



69. Euphonia sclateri. — A specimen, taken by a boy with a 'bean 

 shooter ' and given to me, was the onlv one obtained. They are said to 

 be resident in the vicinity of Ponce, but to visit the country about Maya- 

 guez only in the late summer and autumn, in small flocks. The above 

 mentioned specimen showed no development of the ovaries, and the stom- 

 ach contained seeds of small fruit. The boy who took it said that he 

 observed small flocks several times, and spoke of their singing in a very 

 charming manner, but I did not at any time either see or hear any. 



70. Spindalis portoricensis.— I did not meet with this bird in the vicin- 

 ity of San Juan, nor on the smaller islands, but it is abundant near 

 Aguadilla, Mayaguez, and Las Marias. The only song I have heard it 

 utter was a more or less broken succession of sparrow-like chips and 

 twitters, sharp and strong. The flight is slightly undulating. The food 

 is about 70% fruit and seeds, the remainder insects. Qiiile unlike the 

 Grosbeak, this Tanager is unsuspicious, frequently feeding quite close 

 to one. 



