General Notes. 53 



Chondestes grammica and Vireo philadelphicus in Massa- 

 chusetts. — A Lark Finch {Chondestes grammica) was shot at Magnolia, 

 Mass., August 27, 1879, by W. S. Townsend. This is the third instance 

 of its capture in Massachusetts. 



On September 18, 1879, I shot, at Magnolia, Mass., a Brotherly-love 

 Vireo {Vireo philadelphicus). This is the second instance of its capture 

 in Massachusetts. — C. W. Townsexd. 



Late Breeding of the Blue Grosbeak. — On the 13th of Sep- 

 tember, 1879, I shot, near the village of Falls Church, Fairfax Co., Va. 

 (about eight miles west of Washington), two young Blue Grosbeaks, which 

 were able to fly only a short distance, and evidently had been out of the 

 nest but a day or two. Full-grown young of the year in the fresh au- 

 tumnal dress were shot at the same place and time, so that it is most likely 

 the very young birds secured were a second brood. The species was 

 rather common among the tall weeds and bushes bordering the lower 

 course of a ditch draining a farm. — Robert Ridgway, Washington, 

 D. C. 



The Western Meadow Lark in Northeastern Iowa. — On 

 May 25 (1879), when seven miles west of Fredericksburg, Chickasaw 

 Co., Iowa, I was astonished to hear the note of Slitrnella neglecta, Aud., 

 and I soon after saw the bird resting on a fence. An S. magna was 

 answering its call. The locality is one hundred miles or more farther 

 east than any in which I had previously seen the species. The note teas 

 quite characteristic (I have often seen S. neglecta in Middle and Western 

 Nebraska), and other characters seemed to be also, so far as could be de- 

 termined from a near view. The specimen was not captured. 



During the next three or four days I saw perhaps a dozen individuals 

 of S. neglecta in Floyd and Mitchell Counties, Iowa, and Mower Co., 

 Minnesota, some of which exhibited all characteristic features much more 

 clearly than others ; and I saw several individuals (notably one near 

 Rudd, Floyd Co.), which I was totally unable to satisfactorily identify 

 with either 6\ magna or S. neglecta, either by markings, habits, attitude, or 

 voice. They seemed to hold an intermediate position, in all characters, 

 between the best marked extremes. — W. J. McGee, Farley, Iowa. 



Eastward Range of the Western Meadow Lark. ^In 1867 I 

 found var. neglecta the prevailing form in Central and Western Iowa, from 

 Boone County, westward. I also noticed that in Northern Illinois the 

 Meadow Larks already diifered in song quite markedly from their rela- 

 tives in the Eastern States, the departure being in the direction of that of 

 var. neglecta (see Mem. Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist., I, pt. 4, 1868, pp. 496, 497). 

 Mr. E. W. Nelson has since recorded " Sturnella magna var. neglecta " as 

 " a regular but rather rare summer resident upon prairies " in Northeastern 



