Book News and Reviews 



35 



general habits, together with a brief review 

 of the Orders of Birds. 



Part III of the work, "Animal Ecology," 

 treats of animals in relation to their environ- 

 ment and may be read with profit by all 

 students of birds in nature. — F. M. C. 



The Ornithological Magazines 



The Condor. — The closing number of 

 the third volume of 'The Condor' is de- 

 voted chiefly to articles on geographic dis- 

 tribution. The most important paper is 

 Barlow's ' List of ihe Land Birds of the 

 Placerville-Lake Tahoe Stage Road.' This 

 paper, occupying thirty-four pages and 

 illustrated by five plates and six figures, 

 contains notes on 130 species of summer birds 

 of the central Sierra Nevada. It is based on 

 observations made during six different trips 

 and is supplemented by the field notes of 

 W. W. Price, who has visited the same 

 region regularly for the past nine years. 

 The list proper is prefaced by a description 

 of the country, an account of the life zones, 

 and a brief review of recent work in the 

 region. It is a distinct contribution to the 

 literature of California ornithology, and one 

 which makers of local lists might well take 

 as a model. 



Notes of a different character but always 

 of interest are those recording the occurrence 

 of birds in new or unusual localities. 

 Among the more important ' records ' in 

 this number are Thompson's notes on the 

 Pacific Kittiwake near Pass Robles, and the 

 Snowy Owl in Santa Cruz county; Beld- 

 ing's capture of the Saw-whet Owl at Lake 

 Tahoe; Swarth's record of the Magnolia 

 Warbler at Los Angeles; and Emerson's 

 notes on the Black and White Creeper in 

 Monterey county, Calif. , and the Redstart 

 in the John Day valley, Oregon. Grinnell 

 separates the Least Vireo of southern Cali- 

 fornia as a distinct subspecies (Vireo pusil- 

 lus albatus) and briefly reviews the distri- 

 bution of the Cedar Waxwing on the Pacific 

 coast. The latter bird he considers ' a mi- 

 gratory species breeding in the Humid 

 Transition zone of British Columbia, 

 Washington and Oregon, wintering in the 

 Upper and Lower Sonoran zones of Southern 

 and Lower California.' 



The illustrations are more numerous than 

 usual, among them being two striking half- 

 tones of Gulls on the wing reproduced from 

 ' Camera Craft.' In this connection may be 

 mentioned the announcement that the plans 

 for the next volume contemplate improved 

 illustrations and a new cover. It should be 

 a matter of satisfaction to the members of 

 the Cooper Club and also to readers of 

 ' The Condor ' to learn that the journal is 

 now self-sustaining and its permanence 

 assured. — T. S. P. 



The Osprey. — The three (August, Sep- 

 tember, and October) numbers of ' The 

 Osprey ' which have appeared since our last 

 notice contain much of interest. Dr. Gill's 

 continued article on ' William Swainson and 

 His Times ' has reached the eleventh part, 

 but that on the Fishhawks was concluded in 

 the September issue. William Palmer, in 

 ' Some Birds of Kissimmee Valley, Florida,' 

 gives quite full and interesting annotations 

 on many of the species, and in adopting 

 Maynard's name of purpurea reopens the 

 question of the subspecific name of the 

 Ground Dove. The paper by F. Finn, of 

 the Indian Museum, beginning in the Au- 

 gust and ending in the October number, 

 gives us a very clear idea of how exten- 

 sively birds are used as pets in Calcutta. 

 Paul Bartsch concludes his article on 

 ' Camping on Old Camp Grounds;' M. S. 

 Ray gives a paper on ' Birds About Lake 

 Tahoe;' A. J. Prill, one, ' A Visit to Otter 

 Rock, Pacific Ocean, ' and John W. Daniels, 

 Jr., two, on the 'Prairie Warbler' and 

 'Blue Grosbeak.' 



We have heard, semi-officially, that many 

 improvements will enter into the coming 

 volume. Besides having better paper and 

 new ten-point type, each number will con- 

 tain twenty-four full line pages, and the 

 reproduction of illustrations will be in charge 

 of an experienced plate printer, so as to in- 

 sure the best possible results. It is under- 

 stood that the next volume will commence a 

 new series. We fail to see the desirability of 

 breaking up publications into series, for it 

 makes quotation more complicated, reference- 

 hunting more tedious and the care of indi- 

 vidual volumes more difficult, withoutoffering 

 any corresponding advantages. — A. K. F. 



