576 APPENDIX. 



CATHARTES AURA. Turkey Buzzard. Accidental. One taken at 

 Calais, Me., George A. Boardman; two in Massachusetts, 1863. 



CATHARTES ATRATUS. Black Vulture. Accidental. One taken at 

 Swampscott, Mass., in November, 1850, by S. Jillson; one at Glou- 

 cester, Mass., on Sept. 28, 1863, by William Huntsford ; one in Hudson, 

 Mass. ; others seen, S. Jillson; one near Calais, Me., G. A. Board- 

 man. 



FALCO SACER. Jer Falcon. Iceland Falcon. Eare winter visitor, al- 

 most accidental in southern portions. One killed at Seekonk Plains, 

 Mass., about 1840, by Jillson ; one taken in the winter of 1864-5, near 

 Providence, R.I., by Mr. Newton Dexter. The two species heretofore 

 considered distinct viz., Falco Candicans and F. Islandicus are 

 now considered as belonging to the present species. 



ARCHIBUTEO SANCTIJOHANNIS, Black Hawk; and ARCHIBUTEO LA- 

 GOPUS, Rough-legged Hawk. J. A. Allen gives, in his article on the 

 "Rarer Birds of Massachusetts," the following extract, from a letter 

 written by Dr. William Wood, in relation to these species, to prove that 

 they are identical : 



" I have," he says, " all shades of color, from the light to the black, 

 and I am unable to find the dividing line ; both have the same measure- 

 ments, the same claws and bill, the same habits, come and leave at the 

 same time, and hunt together. I have them almost black, with the faint 

 markings of the lighter bird, showing, to my mind, that the lighter mark- 

 ings become extinct as the black increases, or as the bird increases in age. 

 Those who claim that they are distinct say, that in some localities the 

 Rough-legs are common, and no Black Hawks are to be seen. This 

 proves nothing. The young of the Red-throated Diver are very common 

 in Long-Island Sound, yet the adult is never seen there. So it is with 

 the Crested Grebe: the young are found here in winter, never the 

 adult." 



In another letter, Dr. Wood says: " The Rough-legged Falcon and 

 Black Hawk are the same. I have taken and examined, I presume, forty 

 specimens. They are the same bird, but not of the same age. The black 

 is the adult. So gradually do they become more black till jet-black is 

 reached, that I will defy any one to draw the separating line." 



STRIX PRATINCOLA. Barn Owl. Given by Thompson, on authority 

 of Dr. Brewer, as being not only found in Vermont, but also breeding 

 there. This is, of course, incorrect. Accidental visitor from the South. 

 One taken in Lynn, Mass., about 1863, by Mr. James Teal; one taken 

 at " Sachem's Head," Conn., Oct. 28, 1865, Dr. William Wood; one 

 at Springfield, Mass., May, 1868, J. A. Allen. 



