Literature Relating to Staten Island 177 



ness of expression and logical arrangement which is difficult to 

 understand and impossible to excuse. 



A. H. 



The Toads of the Northeastern United States^ 



In this communication the authors give an account of the dis- 

 tribution, within the region indicated, of Bufo americanus and 

 B. fozvleri, with descriptions of the characters denoting specific 

 differences between them. The only Staten Island toad recog- 

 nized is stated to belong to the latter species, as previously noted 

 by Mr. Chapin in our Proceedings 2: 227. The authors touch 

 upon the question of specific or varietal differences, with a hint 

 at possible hybridity, and end the discussion with the following 

 interesting note: "A male American toad, during the spring of 

 1909, which was put in a cage with some frogs, was later found 

 clasping a female pickerel frog {Rana palustris), to which he 

 clung for several days. Would not such an individual, if unsuc- 

 cessful in securing a mate of his own species, be quite likely, a 

 little later, to fertilize the eggs of a female Fowler's toad?" 



A. H. 



The Kingfisher at Home" 



This is an article in which our Association may justly feel a 

 proprietary interest, as representing the work of one of its mem- 

 bers, both in the text and in the illustrations. The colored cover 

 design is adapted from a photograph by Dvvight Franklin showing 

 a kingfisher in flight, just as it was leaving its hole. 



For some reason, perhaps to avoid publicity, the locality where 

 the observations were made and the photographs taken is not 

 mentioned; but those of our members who were privileged to 

 hear Mr. Cleaves' lecture and to see his lantern slides, will recog- 

 nize the bluff on the shore at Prince's Bay, with all the details 

 of the bird's flight, its hole in the bank, and the methods em- 



'W. de W. Miller and James Chapin. Science II. 32: 31S-3I7- iQio. 

 'Howard H. Cleaves. Country Life in America 18: 333-335 -(- nine 

 text figures. Jl 1910. 



