Page:Condor14(6).djvu/26

232 THE CONDOR VoL XIV Barbara group of islands, eight ih number, off the coast of southern California, whereas the Grinnell list included only the water birds in the vicinity of Santa Catalina and Santa Bar- bara islands. Aside from the increase of terri.- tory covered, the present paper closely follows the model set by Grinnell in his I898 list, es- pecially' in the concise manner of recording facts. Mr. Willett, more than any other southern California ornithologist, has given. speclal at- tention to the birds occurring along the shore and among the islands off the coast, and his activity has, in a way, set the pace fcr others, with the result that an immense amount of data has been accumulated. Some of this has been published in random notes, but much of it was kept in cold storage in the inaccessible note books of individual workers. The Club, therefore, was particularly happy in its se- lection of a collaborator so well qualified to carry out the work. His long list of "ac- knowledgements" indicates how zealously he has followed up every source of information available. Besides this formal acknowledge- ment, full credit is given in the body of the work to each individual contributor. Previous to t898, when the Grinnell list was issued, aside from occasional trips to the islands and along the beaches, no systematic work was done among the water fowl and shore birds. Since that time, under the example of Mr. Willett, that branch of ornithology has been actively investigated, with the result that some thirty-nine species have been added to those recorded in 1898. The total number of three hundred land and water birds recorded in 1898, has been increased to 377 in the present paper, about equally distributed be- tween the land birds, and the shore and water birds. Much of this increase, however, is ac- counted for by the more extensive territory covered and the greater number of workers over the larger area. The work previous to I898, was centered in scarcely half a dozen earnest students, in a limited area. In many cases the notes enable us to make comparisons with conditions which existed previous to 1898. For instance, Grinnell and Gaylord visited a colony of Cassin Anklet (Ptychoramphus aleuticus) on Santa Barbara Island on May 16, 1897. In June, 19II, Mr. Willett found "that the old breeding colony of these birds was entirely abandorted. From the bones and feathers of this bird found all over the island, I concluded that they had been exterminated by the cats with which the island is infested. On a detached rocky islet, a quarter of a mile from the main island, I found about one hundred pairs of anklets nesting." It seems that the cat ques- tion bas thrust itself even to the islands of the Pacific ! The llst adheres closely to the nomenclat- ure employed in the A. O. U. Check-List of 1910, although in a number of instances the author differs from this authority on ques- tions of distribution of certain species and sub- species. Indeed, who of our California workers does not? In each case he gives full reason for his contrary opinions. A hypothetical list gives eighteen species of more or less doubt- ful occurrence. The paper concludes with an index of the scientific and common names of all species noted. That this contribution has passed under the able editorship of Joseph Grinnell and Harry S. Swarth, vouches for its high standard in every respect. Indeed, Pacific Coast Avifauna No. 7 maintains the high standard set by the previous publications of the Club, and is a.model which may be en- larged upon, but can scarcely be improved. FsA? S. DAGGETT. I?AGElg- UND GEWOLLUNTERSUCHUNGEN $ERER EINIIEIMI$CHEN RAUBVOGEL, by D?. Eu.- o?:? G?scH?x. [--Aquila, vol: 18, pp. 1.11-177, 6 figs. in text]. One of the first, and in our estimation one of the bdst of the publications of the U. S. Biological Survey, was Fisher's "Hawks and Owls of the United States." As tt?e eco.- nomic value of the birds of prey is far more evident than that of other birds, it seems very fitting that these birds should be the I?rst ones to be considered by the economic orni- thologist. In several foreign countries in- terest is centered at the present time in th( ?. food of hawks and owls. In Aquila for 1911, Dr. Eugen Greschik continues a report of his researches on the food of the native bi'rds of prey of Hungary. The paper is entitled: "Siomach and Pellet Examination of Our Native Birds of Prey." The first installment, published in Aquila for 1910, furnished evidence as to the food of the hawks, whereas the more recent article deals with the owls. The introduction to the last contribution points out the need of protection for owls, owing to the great yearly slaughter. Evidence is advanced that at least 11,593 Uhreulen and 18,738 other owls were shot in 1907. Atten- tion is called to the value of these birds to the agriculturist and forester, so that better pro- tection may result. Reference is also made to the economic work of the U.S. Biological Survey, and to that of certain European museums and societies. Emphasis is laid on the necessity of "positive data" as to the food of birds as a means of determining their real value. A discussion of the f.ood of the seven spe- cies of owls to be found in Hungary forms the main part of the paper. Short descriptions of the habitat and habits, and figures of the