Mr. H. E. Dresser on the Birds of Southern Texas. 469 



Hylatomus pileatus (Linnaeus) . Pileated Woodpecker. 



Resident and pretty common near all tlie large rivers where 

 the timber is heavy. A few are found on the Medina, and the 

 eggs have been taken there ; but they are not common in that 

 district. On the Colorado and Brazos Rivers this bird was very 

 common, and I found several nests in huge cotton-wood trees, 

 but had no means of getting up to them ; besides which, I could 

 not stop long enough to undertake such a task. 



Male. Upper mandible bluish-black; lower mandible light 

 blue ; iris pale reddish-orange ; legs dull black. 



Centrurus CAROLiNus (Linnseus). Red-bellied Woodpecker. 

 Common and resident. 



Centrurus flaviventris, Swainson. Yellow-bellied or Mez- 

 quite- Woodpecker. 



I found this beautiful Woodpecker plentiful from the Rio 

 Grande to San Antonio, and as far north and east as the Gua- 

 daloupe River, after which I lost sight of it. Wherever the mez- 

 quite trees are pretty large, there it is to be found, and (so far 

 as my experience goes) very sparingly elsewhere. Near San 

 Antonio it is pretty common, but not so much so as Centrurus 

 caj'olinus. At Eagle Pass, however, it is much commoner than 

 that species. 



It breeds near San Antonio, boring for its nest-hole into a 

 mezquite tree ; and Dr. Heermann, who has cut out many of 

 their nests, tells me he has never found one in any but a mez- 

 quite tree. 



Male. Beak dark horn-blue ; iris bright red ; legs lead-grey. 



Melanerpes erythrocephalus (Linnseus). Red-headed 

 Woodpecker. 



Travelling from Brownsville to San Antonio, I first noticed 

 this bird near the Nueces River. Near San Antonio it is resi- 

 dent, and not uncommon ; and on the Guadaloupe, Colorado, 

 and Brazos Rivers, it is by far the commonest Woodpecker, so 

 that one cannot walk through the wooded " bottom-lands" with- 

 out seeing at least half a dozen. Near the Medina it is also 

 found, and on the 5th May I found a nest there. 



