ORNITHOLOGY OF GUADELOUPE ISLAND, BASED ON NOTES 

 AND COLLECTIONS MADE BY DR. EDWARD PALMER. 



By Robert Kidgway. 



The small collection of birds transmitted to the National Museum by 

 Dr. Palmer is very interesting, from the fact that every one of the resi- 

 dent species is distinct from any found on the neighboring main-land, 

 although each has a continental representative more or less nearly 

 related. The collection is said to include all the species of land-birds 

 found on the island, with the exception of a humming-bird, a hawk, and 

 two kinds of owls, no specimens of which were obtained. 



While the peculiar fades of this local insular fauna is very strongly 

 marked, it is a noteworthy fact that among the Passeres, when there is 

 any similarity to continental forms, the closest resemblance is to the 

 Eocky Mountain or Middle Province races, instead of those of the neigh- 

 boring Pacific coast. Thus, the Junco, the Thryomanes, and the Garpo- 

 dacus are much more like J. cmneetens, T. bewicM leucogaster, and G. 

 frontalis frontalis than J. oregonus, T. hewicTci spilurus, and G. frontalis 

 rhodocolpiis of the coast district. It is still more remarkable that the 

 Polyhorus should, while distinct from either, be more like the species 

 from southern South America (P. tliarus) than that from Lower Cali- 

 fornia and other portions of Middle America (P. eheriway). 



It is much to be regretted that the notes accompanying the specimens 

 are so meagre ; they only furnish the information that the position of 

 Guadeloupe is between latitude 28° 45' and 29° 10' north, and olf the 

 coast of liOwer California, two hundred and twenty miles southwest from 

 San Diego. 



The land-birds ascertained by Dr. Palmer to inhabit the island during 

 the breeding-season are the following: — 



Fam. Sylvild^. 



1. Eegulus calendula obscurus 7iobis. 



Fam. Teoglodttid^. 



2. Salpinctes obsoletus guadeloupensis nohis. 



3. Thryomanes brevicauda nobis. 



Fam. Fringillid^. 



4. Carpodacus amplus nobis. 



5. Junco insularis nobis. 



6. Pipilo maculatus consobrinus nobis. 



Fam. Trochlltd^e. 



7. ? (Unidentified.) 



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