76 General Notes. \f}^ 



LJan. 



GENERAL NOTES. 



A Curious Influx of Southern Herons to New Jersey. — In the October, 

 number of 'The Auk' (XXV, p. 473) I recorded the capture of an Ameri- 

 can Egret at Sea Bright, N. J., by Mr. R. B. Romaine. He has since 

 informed me that sometime between August 5 and 15 two more were seen, 

 and that from August 6 to September 5, 1908, a large flock (nearly fifty 

 birds) of immature Little Blue Herons (Ardea ccerulea) were inhabiting 

 the tide flats. On September 5, the last day they were seen, he shot a 

 male out of a flock of three, and wounded another. This specimen he 

 had mounted, and is now in his home. 



Mr. Romaine's family have lived at Sea Bright for nearly forty years, 

 and never before have they seen any species of southern heron in the 

 neighborhood. Could the excessively hot weather of the past July have 

 caused their occurrence? — Reginald Heber Howe, Jr., Concord, Mass. 



The Little White Egret in New Mexico. — A specimen of this beautiful 

 heron (Egretta < andidissima) was shot Oct. 21, 1908, while on a small pond 

 at the home ranch of the G. O. S. Cattle Co., by one of the farm hands. 

 Fortunately the writer arrived at the ranch the next day and was able to 

 skin the bird at once; it proved to be a male in excellent plumage and 

 flesh. It had been noticed for several hours before alighting on the pond, 

 flying about the barn buildings in company with a flock of domestic pi- 

 geons. The bird is now in the possession of Mrs. Victor Culberson of the 

 G. O. S. Ranch. This ranch has an altitude of 6300 feet, and is on the 

 head waters of the Sapillo Creek (a tributary of the Gila River), the exact 

 location of the ranch being Section 15, T 15 S, R 12 W. 



The spot where this bird was taken is about sixty miles north of the 

 place where the specimen reported in 'The Auk' two years ago by Maj. 

 Munson, was secured. — W. H. Bergtold, Denver, Colo. 



The Clapper Rail in Essex County, Mass. — On September 15, 1908, 

 I picked up on the beach at Plum Island, Mass., near the mouth of the 

 Ipswich River, a dead Clapper Rail. After fully satisfying myself as to 

 the identity of the bird, I took it to the Abbott Frazar Co., taxidermists, 

 in Boston, to be mounted. I have since been informed by them that no 

 indications were found of the bird's having been shot; and, taking into 

 consideration the fact that water ran freely from the bird's mouth when 

 picked up by the legs, I imagine that it probably died in the water. The 

 body did not appear to be decomposed to any extent, and the taxidermist's 

 foreman informed me that the bird had probably not been dead over three 

 days. Taking into consideration the direction of winds, etc., during that 

 period, it seems very unlikely that the rail could have drifted from further 

 south. I have written a full statement of the facts to Mr. John Robinson, 

 of the Peabody Museum at Salem, Mass., and Mr. Edward S. Morse, the 



