1912] Swarth: Birds and Mammals from Vancouver Island 53 



little fir tree, such as are scattered all along the ridge, and, with 

 a little trouble, was secured. An hour or two later another was 

 observed in a similar location, but was too wary to be approached. 

 They did not appear to be feeding, but sat quietly on the tree 

 tops, giving utterance to an occasional low whistle. These three 

 were all that were observed. 



The specimen secured (no. 15868) is a male in juvenal 

 plumage, just beginning to molt into first winter plumage. It is 

 rather a dark colored bird, compared with the juvenals of P. e. 

 calif ornica at hand, but the distinguishing feature of the speci- 

 men is the large, swollen bill. In this, as well as in other respects, 

 it is indistinguishable from comparable examples of P. e. flam- 

 mula from the coast of Alaska, to which race it is apparently to 

 be referred. 



While the capture of this young bird does not in itself con- 

 stitute a breeding record, it makes it seem highly probable that 

 the species does breed in some parts of the island. This is far 

 south of the breeding range of flammula as defined heretofore, 

 but a pine grosbeak breeding on Vancouver Island would, reason- 

 ing from analogy, be more apt to be related to the bird of the 

 Sitkan district of Alaska, directly to the northward, than to the 

 one residing in the interior of British Columbia. 



Carpodacus purpureus californicus Baird 

 California Purple Finch 



A fairly common species on the east side of Vancouver Island, 

 but not seen on the west coast. The second week in May, on the 

 Little Qualicum River, male birds were observed, singly, sitting 

 in the tree tops singing. Two females collected at this time by 

 Miss Alexander contained eggs in their oviducts. At Errington, 

 in September, small flocks and single birds were seen from time 

 to time throughout the month, usually feeding in clumps of 

 willows. 



Fifteen specimens were collected (nos. 15869-15883). Eight 

 are adult males, two are breeding males, but in the brown, 

 streaked plumage, four adult females, and one an immature 

 female in first winter plumage. In both sexes the colors are 

 appreciably darker than in most California examples of the 



