58 



General Notes. Y]l^ 



The White-crowned Sparrow {Zoiiotrichia leucophrys). on Long Island, 

 N. Y. — I am permitted to record the capture at Parkville, L. I., of the 

 White-crowned Sparrow on April lo, 1897. I consider noteworthy the 

 early date of the record. — William C. Braislin, M. D., Brooklyn, N. Y. 



Rank of the Sage Sparrow. — The particular piece of countrj^ of inter' 

 est in the present connection is near the head of the Little Tujunga 

 Canon, in the mountains of the central part of Los Angeles County, 

 California, at an elevation of 4000 to 6000 feet. It is well on the Pacific 

 side of the divide, but the Mojave Desert is not more than ten miles to 

 the northeast, while the fertile plains of the Pacific slope are about the 

 same distance southwestward. The rolling mountain ridges, especially 

 on their southern sides, are covered with a more or less heavy growth of 

 brush, composed of several kinds of dwarf trees and shrubs, such as 

 manzanita, scrub-oak, greasewood, buckthorn, etc. 



In the vicinity of this semi-arid tract of limited extent, I spent the 

 month of July, 1897, collecting birds. Along with Spizella atrigidaris, 

 Sptzella bretveri, Chamcea fasciata henshaxvi, and others of the brush- 

 loving birds, I was surprised to find quite numerous both Amphisfiza 

 belli s.\\d A. (belW) nevadensis. The former is a common bird in the foot- 

 hills nearer the coast, but the latter I had previously supposed to be 

 exclusively a bird of the sage-brush deserts. Indeed, here its light colors 

 did not well harmonize with the deep shades of the brush, and it was 

 rendered quite conspicuous, much more so than the darker-colored Bell's 

 Sparrow. The Sage Sparrows have evidently extended their range up 

 over the mountains, so that here the habitats of the two forms overlap. 



What was most interesting was that the two forms were inhabiting the 

 same locality and breeding, and yet I saw or obtained no specimens of an 

 intermediate character. I secured adults and young of both forms, and 

 none showed any evidence whatever of intergradation or even 'hybridiza- 

 tion.' The far lighter tone of coloration of nevadeitsis and its larger size 

 rendered both adults and young readily distinguishable from those of 

 belli., even at a long distance. The call-notes of the two birds were 

 slightly different in quality, and the Bell's Sparrow seemed the more 

 retiring, keeping itself groundward among the brush, while the Sage 

 Sparrow was prominent, perching at the tops of the bushes and flying 

 from one to another frequently. 



These observations have led me to conclude, as others have surmised, 

 that these two forms are specifically distinct. I have never learned of 

 any intermediate specimens having been taken, and Mr. Walter E. Bryant, 

 who has seen and taken many of these birds, tells me that he has never 

 found an intermediate, and he fully agrees with me as to their distinct- 

 ness. I therefore propose that these two forms be considered hei-eafter 

 as separate species. According to the A. O. U. Check-List, the group 

 should, therefore, stand as follows: — 



