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Jan., 1912 PUBLICATIONS REVIEWED 45 of strong emphasis in such a paper; namely, the fact that locality and numbers of individ- uals have a great deal to do with the amount of damage done. In som? parts of the United States sapsuckers are of such rare occurrence that the placing-of the birds on the blacklist -would be foolish indeed. As the study of economic ornithology progresses it will be seen ?more and more clearly that whereas a bird may be a pest in certain localities due to certain local conditioi?s, yet in other localities the same bird may be a decided benefit or at least of neutral value. There is no intention of defending sapsuckers as a class, for we agree with Mr. McAtee that the sapsucker "must be included in the class of injurious species, the destruction of which when caught redhanded is justifiable"; but "circumstances alter cases" and this view is important. The bibliography is a welcome addition in this publication of the Biological Survey. To the average farmer this means nothing, but to the scientific student it adds greatly to the value of the paper. The incorporation of reli- able data by ,ther workers in the field adds much to this t"pe of publication. It is a pleas- nre to note alsi? the ela. borate set of plates and figures. To ae men for whom these publi- cations are intended such illustrations mean much more tl;an the printed data.--H. C. BRYANT. A MONOG1.APII OF THE BROAD-WINGED HAWK (Blgteo platypterus) by FRANK L. BURNS [=The Wilson Bulletin xxziI, 1911, nos 3 and 4, pp. 143-320, 10 pls.]. The scope of this work is perhaps best indicated by a recapitulation of the differcut heads under which the subject is treated, which, in order of succession, are as follows: Diagnosis of genus, distinguishing specific characters, description and measurements, sy- nonymy, geographical distribution, flight, food, voice, enemies, disposition in the presence of other birds, disposition in the presence of man, disposition in captivity, migration, sta- tion, mating, nidification, incubation, young, molt and renewal, bibliography. The assemblage of the mass of data here presented is evidently the result of a large amount of painstaking labor. Besides being a compilation of previously published literature on the subject, the paper contains much new and unpublished material, the many manuscript records in the details regarding distribution, and the careful accounts of the molt, actions and habits of yo, ung birds raised in captivity, being partieula?rly noticeable. The illustra- tions are excellent and well chosen, figuring young birds, immatures, and adults, eggs and nests. It is, therefore, an important contribution to our knowledge of the species, and a praise- worthy effort at condensing and making aocess- Able the widely scattered information dealing with the subject. In spite of its general ex- cellence, however, there are a few points which the reviewer (possessing a very limited knowl- edge of the species dealt with) feels could have been made more clear and explicit. Thus while in the definition of its geographical dis- tribution, the southern limit in summer is given as from Florida to central Texas (page 170), farther on, nnder "nidification" (page 248) there is mention of the character of nests found in Central America, leaving the reader in doubt as to whether the species occurs there in summer, or breeds in winter. Then in the treatment of the Cuban bird, a new name is offered for the subspecies, Buteo platypterus cubancrisis, but in an exceedingly casual man- ner, neither a type specimen nor type locality being designated; also it is impossible to deter- mine from the text whether or not the author believes the bird he is naming is recognizably distinct.--H. S. SWARTIl. TIlE RELATION OF BIRDS TO AN INSECT OUTBREAK IN NORTIlERN CALIFORNIA during the spring and summer of 1911. By HAROLD C. BRYANT. (----..CONDOR XIII, no. 6, Nov.- Dee., 1911, pp. 195-208, figs. 67-70). This is the first attempt, so far as the re- viewer is aware, to study the behavior of birds in the presence of abnormally large num- bers of butterflies. An idea of the immense numbers of these insects (Eugonia californica) . present during the outbreak in northern Cal- ifornia, is given by Mr. Bryant's statement that an average of 108 per minnte passed be- tween two fir trees 20 feet high and 30 feet apart, and that 150 were counted on one square foot of ground at a dritlking place. From direct observation the author learned that the Brewer blackbird, the western king- bird and meadowlark fed upon the butterflies, and examination of stomachs added the Say phoebe and the blue-fronted jay. Both sourc- es of evidence pointed to the Brewer blackbird as the principal bird enemy of the insects, and flocks of this species were seen feeding almost exclusively upon the Eugonia. Thus only five species of birds out of a total of 45 species observed, and of 21 of which stomachs were examined, were found feeding upon but- terflies under circumstances about as favorable for that pursuit as can be imagined. Eliminat- ing the smaller birds which could hardly be expected to prey upon ?ugonia, it was found that the known enemies constituted only about a fifth of the numbers of species of the remain- ing larger birds.