I line 



1887.] 



AKD OOLOGIST. 



8^ 



one pair of birds in the vicinity, so that the 

 five eg<?s must have been laid by the one birtl. 



BaUns longirostris crepUaus, Clapper Rail. 

 Shot one bird and found a single nest contain- 

 ing three eggs of this species, on Padre Island. 

 The eggs were perfectly fresh and when cooked 

 they proved to be excellent. 



lonornis martinica, Purple Gallinule. Several 

 were seen among the reeds on the Nueces River. 



Grus amei'icanus. Whooping Crane. We saw 

 Immense flocks of these birds on the praries in 

 Williamson Count3r. They allowed the loco- 

 motive to approach quite near to them. They 

 were also observed in Comal Count^^, but al- 

 ways out of gunshot. 



Grus canadensis. Sandhill Crane. Seen with 

 the Whooping Crane, in the same localities. 



Chen hi/2wrboreus, Snow Goose. We saw a 

 large flock of these on the Xueces River, and 

 noticed two in dark plumage. 



Anas obscura, Black Mallard. The only duck 

 we found breeding at Corpus Christi. The 

 nests were built on the edge of the river's bank 

 and were so carefully concealed that if the birds 

 had not flown up we would never have noticed 

 them. The three nests that we found each con- 

 tained only two eggs, as they had evidently 

 only commenced laying. 



Dajila acuta, Pintail. On May 20th I saw a 

 flock of these ducks on the Gulf, near Coi-pus 

 Christi. 



Spatula clypeata. Shoveller. Two fine speci- 

 mens shot on April 10th in Comal County, near 

 a water hole. 



Fulix marila, Scaup Duck. Seen on May 20th 

 in large numbers on the Gulf. We shot several. 



Clangula glancium americana, American Gol- 

 den-eye. Saw several on the Nueces River on 

 May 12th. 



Erismatura ruhida, Ruddy Duck. The most 

 abundant duck observed at Corpus Christi. 



Tacnypetes aquila, Frigate Pelican. At Cor- 

 pus Chi'isti we saw one of these birds at an 

 immense height, where it sailed for hours over 

 the town. Another was observed at Padre 

 Island. 



Pelecanus erythrorhynchus, American White 

 Pelican. Not common. At Corpus Christi we saw 

 them sitting im the salt meadows, and they were 

 afterwards found in company with the Brown 

 Pelican. Our guide informed us that they bred 

 in colonies at the mouth of the Rio Grande 

 River. 



Pelecanus fuscus, Brown Pelican. On May 

 20th, on Pelican Island in the Gulf of Mexico, 

 we found a colony of these birds breeding. 

 The nests were regularly arranged in rows to 



about the number of fifty. Then came a pas- 

 sage-way, and then another block of fifty or so. 

 The male birds seemed to be generally standing 

 in these passage-ways when not' incubating. 

 The nests were on the ground, and were very 

 bulky, being about two feet in diameter, and 

 built to the height of six inches or more. The 

 eggs were far advanced when we were there, 

 and many young birds were seen. We found 

 three eggs in the nest, and two outside. This 

 was always the case, and those eggs which 

 were lying outside seemed to be as much incu- 

 bated as those which were inside. We also saw 

 birds sitting on some of the eggs which were 

 outside of the nests. 



The bii-ds were very tame, and allowed us to 

 approach within a few feet of them while they 

 were incubating, and when they rose to take 

 wing they frequently scattered the young birds 

 out of the nests in all directions, and the latter 

 climbed back into the first nest that was con- 

 venient. I am sure that the parent birds did 

 not know their young. 



We turned the males to account by chasing 

 them, and when they enq)tied the contents of 

 their pouches we liad a plentiful supply of fisli 

 bait. 



We estimated that there were fully fifty thou- 

 sand pelicans bleeding on this island, which 

 could not have contained more than thirty 

 acres. They presented a very curious sight 

 as they sat in solemn rows, with their round 

 knob-like heads, and indeed we took them for 

 stakes when we first a^jproached the island. 



Plotus ankinga, American Aidiinga. A num- 

 ber were observed at Corpus Christi. 



Rhynrhops nigra, Black Skiunner. We saw 

 these birds sitting in large numbers on the sand 

 bars in the mouth of the Nueces River. Upon 

 our approach they flew around our heads utter- 

 ing dismal cries. They scooped a hollow in 

 the sand, in which they deposited their eggs. 

 They were from four to five in number. 



Lams atricilla, Laughing Gull. Very com- 

 mon on the coast, and they bred on the salt 

 meadows near Corpus Christi. 



Lams frankUni, Franklin's Gull. Rather rare. 

 Saw a few at Corpus Christi, and shot two. 



Sterna anglica, Gull-billed Tern. Found 

 breeding on Pelican Island, where they were 

 common, laying their eggs on the bare sand. 



Sterna caspia, Caspian Tern. These birds 

 breed on the upper end of Pelican Island, 

 where we found them in a large colony. 

 Their nests were a mere hollow in the sand, 

 and they contained from two to three eggs, 

 the majority of them three. 



