Sept., 1905 | 
141 
Notes on a Small Collection of California Birds 
with Description of an Apparently Unrecognized Race of Hutton’s Vireo 
BY I.OUIS B. BISHOP, M. I). 
A MONG somewhat over 1000 beautifully made bird-skins collected for me in 
lgc^and 4 by Mr. H. W. Marsden at Redlands, San Bernardino County, 
and Witch Creek and Pacific Beach, San Diego County, California, the 
following seem of enough interest to be placed on record. The Volcan Mountains, 
Mr. Marsden writes me, are twelve miles from Witch Creek. 
Synthliboramphus antiquus. Ancient Murrelet. A male in worn winter 
plumage, with its feathers matted with petroleum, was found dead at Pacific Beach 
on April 25, 1904. 
Stercorarius longicaudus. Long-tailed Jaeger. A young male, taken at 
Pacific Beach, Sept. 19, 1904. 
Sterna elegans. Elegant Tern. An adult male, taken at Pacific Beach, 
Sept. 21, 1904. 
Sterna hirundo. Common Tern. Three adult males, two of them in winter 
plumage, taken at Pacific Beach, Sept. 12, 8, 15, 1904. 
Charitonetta albeola. Buffle-head. A male in peculiarly worn and faded 
first winter plumage, taken at Pacific Beach, April 22, 1904. The upper parts 
and wings are brownish black broadly edged with ashy or creamy white. The 
chin is wood brown, and most of the loral region and sides of neck varies between 
wood brown and drab. Of the tail feathers little but the shafts remain and many 
of these have been broken off close to the body. The contour feathers as a whole 
are greatly worn and noticeably shorter than usual. This bird probably was in 
the second spring, but for some reason had failed to moult for a year and a half. 
A triangular patch of black but worn feathers on the forehead with others on the 
lores and extending on both sides toward the chin was probably assumed in the 
fall of 1903 in an abortive attempt at adult dress. 
Rallus levipes. Bangs’s Rail. Eleven specimens, taken at Pacific Beach in 
October, January, and April are remarkably uniform in color and size, and agree 
closely with Mr. Bangs’s description of this species. Unfortunately I have been 
unable to compare them with specimens of R. beldingi and R. obso/etus. 
Macrorhamphus griseus scolopaceus. Long-billed Dowitcher. A young male 
and young female, taken at Pacific Beach, Sept. 16, 1904. 
Tringa canutus. Knot. Two young males, taken at Pacific Beach on Sept. 10 
and 16, 1904. Mr. Marsden wrote that he did not consider the knot rare there, as 
he saw several others. 
Actodromas bairdi Baird’s Sandpiper. A young female taken at Pacific 
Beach, Sept. 8, 1904. 
Aphriza virgata. Surf Bird. A young male, taken at Pacific Beach, Sept. 8, 
1904. 
Arenaria interpres. European Turnstone. A young female turnstone, taken 
at Pacific Beach, Sept. 8, 1904. Mr. Oberholser agrees with me in referring it to 
this species. 
Accipiter velox rufilatus. Western Sharp-shinned Hawk. Adult male col- 
lected by Mr. Marsden at Witch Creek on Nov. 5, 1904, and Newcastle, Colorado, 
on Aug. 13, 1902, agree with Mr. Ridgway’s description of A. v. rufilalus, but an 
adult female and young female from Witch Creek, taken on Dec. 10, 1904, and 
