132 



OK:^riTHOLOGIST 



[Vol. 12-Ko. 8 



I have met with only one other Virginia Rail 

 whicli was found dead undej- the telegraph 

 wire. Still from their dislike to take wing 

 they are not often seen and may be more com- 

 mon tlian I am aware of. 



The Sense of Smell in the Black 

 Vulture. 



BV WALTER HOXIE. 



On the 27th of April, 1887, I captured a young 

 Black Vulture wliicli could not have been at 

 th;it time more tlian two days old. Wlien he 

 had attained the age of thi-ee weeks I sub- 

 mitted him to a course of experiments in order 

 to ascertain whether or no he possessed the 

 sense of smell. The results up to the present 

 time, May 2!)th. 1887, are all on the negative 

 side of the question. 



On May 20th he had been purposely kept 

 two days without food but was liberally sup- 

 plied with water. lie was confined in a box 

 with a slatted top one foot square and two feet 

 five inches long. Upon showing myself near 

 the box he displayed great excitement and 

 eagerness, pushing his head between the slats 

 and grasping every object placed within his 

 reach with hungry eagerness. After being 

 duped several times with chips, oj^ster shells 

 and bits of stick he became sulky at so many 

 disappointments and refused to grasp anything 

 ottered to him. While in this state of mind 

 a putrid crab was slowly brought by an assis- 

 tant from a distance of seventy- one yards to 

 windward of his box and placed on the lee side 

 at first. The same system of teasing was still 

 cari-ied on and the crab passed round to wind- 

 ward. Still he showed no sign that he was 

 aware of any food being at hand. Then I 

 cautiously raised both hands above the edge 

 of the box, the one holding an oyster shell and 

 the other the crab. Before I could drop the 

 latter he snatched it from my grasp and pro- 

 ceeded to regale himself with every sign of 

 extreme satisfaction. After disposing of this 

 tidbit he was heartily fed. No more was given 

 him till the 23d. On the morning of that day 

 the skinned and partially disembowelled bodies 

 of three small herons were laid on a work 

 bench one foot and ten inches above the top of 

 his box. These bodies were not very odorifer- 

 ous at this time, but in a few hours they be- 

 came extremely so. I did not approach the 

 box or tease him on this occasion, but listened 

 from the room where I was at work for any 



sounds of excitement. Late in the afternoon 

 his unmistakable voice was heard, and he was 

 found reaching upward with eagci-ness and 

 plain 1)^ indicating that he was aware that there 

 was food upon the bench. Almost at the same 

 instant a drop of blood fell upon his box. He 

 scraped eagerly at it with his bill and then 

 looked upward again for more. I now moved 

 the bodies a few inches to one side and wiped 

 up the blood which had trickled down through 

 a crack. As long as I was in sight he kept up 

 his noise and antics, but when [ went awaj' he 

 was still again. In about an hour's time I fed 

 him, and he has been bountifully supplied ever 

 since. This afternoon a dish containing the 

 still warm entrails of two fowls was covered 

 and placed in his box. He showed no curiosity 

 as to the contents until the cover was removed. 

 I thought he could not be at all hungry but 

 judging from the speed with which the viands 

 disappeared they did not come at all amiss. 



My conviction is as before expressed that 

 the Black Vulture is not capable of detecting 

 its food by the scent. I shall not consign this 

 lovely pet to his native wilds for some time to 

 come and if I should detect any symptoms, as 

 he grows older, of a development of the sense 

 of smell, I shall not fail to make the fact 

 known through the medium of the O. and O. 



The Spring and Fall Plumage of Our 

 Shore Birds. 



BY F. II. CARPENTER. 



In glancing over tlie numerous lists of bird 

 skins in collections, I have often remarked the 

 error into which many ornithologists have 

 fallen in dividing the conditions of plumage of 

 birds, especially those of order Limicoke. That 

 such a distinction of plumage should receive 

 due attention and classification is without dis- 

 pute, but when the division is based upon the 

 change iu seasons, rather than age of the bird, 

 some exceptions should be cited. Taking, for 

 instance, the Black-bellied Plover (Charadrius 

 squatarola). a well known species, which has 

 come under my observation frequently. I have 

 shot as full plumaged birds of this species in 

 Sei)tember as in May. In their large flocks on 

 Monomoy I have seen many black individuals 

 among the juvenile gray specimens. Also with 

 the Sanderling (Calidris arenaria), the same 

 remarks will apply, save for the fact that the 

 adults are noted in separate flocks, and earlier 

 in the season than the young. 



