Notes on Certain Birds of the Lower Florida Keys

302 GeneralNotes [April[Auk stormy condition in the AransasBay region. It is possiblethat the Flamingo flew in ahead of the hurricane. There is also the possibilitythat the bird had been in this region for severalweeks. Mr. Gordon Gunter, of the Game, Fish and Oyster Commission,told me afterwardsthat somethree or four weekspreviously Mr. George A. Ratisseauhad reportedseeing, at a great distanceand not very dearly, what he thought was possiblya Flamingo among a group of RoseateSpoonbills, near his Jolly Roger Camp on CopanoBay. The Flamingo may have been a stray from the Bahama region or it might have come from Yucatan. The latter suppositionseems to be the most plausible one.- CONGERN. HAGAR(MRs. JACKHACAR), Rockport, Texas. Notes on certain birds of the lower Florida Keys.--Duringthe writer's assignment at Key West, Florida, for the Fish and Wildlife Servicefrom February 1939until October 1942,notes were made on the avifaunaof the Lower Florida Keys,which include thosekeys lying from about the Bahia Honda bridge southwesterlyto the Marquesas, including the Great White Heron and Key West National Wild- life Refuges. Although much time and study was devoted to the Great White, Ward's, and Wurdemann'sherons, about 160 speciesand subspeciesof birds were recorded. As comparativelylittle information has been publishedon the area, the followingspecies have been selectedas of specialinterest. Terrestrial bird life was disappointing until it wasrealized that the area is maritime, consistingof hundredsof keysscat- tered along the Gulf and Atlantic Oceanwith many miles of water. RoseateSpoonbill (Aiaia aiaia).--Althoughwe found no nestson the Marquesas Keys, which lie about twenty miles off Key West and comprisethe westerly ex- tremity of the Key West Refuge,we did seebirds there asfollows: February 20, 1940, one adult bird flying directly over our skiff late in the afternoon. On July 16 of the sameyear, one bird alightedon the marl flat and commencedfeeding, and later in the day Joe Warren, my patrolman, and I saw four birds off Little Creek near EasternHarbor of the Marquesas,one of which may have been the bird recorded earlier. On April 18,1941,Joe Warren countedsix birdsat the Marquesas,and on June 18 of the sameyear, I sawone in flight there. On July 25, 1942,one bird, apparentlyan adult, was seenfeeding about a pond in Key West. On August 13, 14, 15, 25, and 29, 1942,one bird, probablythe same individual,was seen feeding about the pondsof Key West,generally in the evening around 8 P.M. It was at times quite tame, allowing a closeapproach. Swainson'sHawk (Buteoswainsoni).--Wintering regularly, as far as I coulddeter- mine from natives,this westernhawk has beenrecorded by the writer in Key West, on StockIsland, Sugarloafand NonameKeys. Those seenappeared to be of the light phaseor possiblyintergrades. They were tame, appearedsluggish, and were easilyapproached. Birds, perched on polesalong the highway,would fly from pole to pole in front of an approachingcar or pedestrian. Short-tailedHawk (Buteo brachyurus).--Ihave only a few recordsof this rare bird in the area. Two birds were seensoaring near PorpoiseKey on March 16, 1939, both in the white phase. One bird in the dark phasewas seen soaring near Key Largo,off the mainland,on January1, 1940. At one time it divedtoward the earth for a shortdistance. A bird in the darkphase was seen at BocaGrande Key, in the Key West Refuge,on October17, 1940. MangroveClapper Rail (Ralluslongirostris insularum).--Apparently a permanent residentalthough seldom seen during the winter months.An abundantnester about ¾ol.6, ] GeneralNotes 303 1944 .• Key West and on mostof the other keysin that area. This rail is an excellentswim- mer and at times very approachable,and as little has been written regardingit, I found it an interestingsubject of study. White-crownedPigeon (Columba leucocephala).--Winteringin Cuba and other West Indian islands,this bird reachesthe keysgenerally in early or middle May and leavesfor the south in September. A few winter. They nest on many of the keysand feed at certainchoice spots containing theie favorite diet of wild fig, Natal plum, seagrape, etc. Although shot in great numbersin Cuba during the winter, continual protectionalong the keyswill help to restorethis very interestingspecies which has such a limited nesting area in this country. EasternWhite-winged Dove (Melopeliaasiatics asiatica).--On May 19, 1940,I ob- servedone of thesebirds at closerange near the Inn on Big Pine Key. Its markings were very distinctive. Nativesstated that they found them occasionallymixed with flocksof MourningDoves. However, investigations showed the bird to be very scarce. Maynard'sCuckoo (Coccyzusminor maynardi).--Thisshy but interestingbird was found to be rather rare along the Lower Keys although its secretivehabits may ac- count for my scarcityof records,all of which, exceptone, were made on Sugarloaf Key about twenty miles northeasterlyfrom Key West, in May, June, and Augustof 1939 and June and August of 1940. On June 24, 1941,a dead bird was examined on Cudjoe Key, which had apparently been killed by a car on the highway. The notes of this bird were somewhat like those of the Yellow-billed Cuckoo, common in the area, but there was enoughdifference to be easilyrecognized. Smooth-billedAni (Crotophagaan0.--This West Indian specieswas first found by me on July 4, 1939-on a wire near my home in Key West. As I had seena number of them in Cuba someyears before, I wasdelighted to renew the acquaintance. My recordsare for July and August, 1939;August, 1940;July, 1941; and June and July, 1942. Generally one individual wasseen but on August6, 1939,and June 26, 1942, two birds were recorded. Searchwas made for a possiblenest but without success. The comingsand goingsof this bird were somewhatof a mysteryto me and I could hear its loud notesas it approachedmy home from a distance. It appearedto have a somewhatregular route and favor{tefeeding grounds on the island. Its notes were rather musical in tone and not at all like those of a ]Florida Grackle, for in- stance--aspecies common about the area. At times the Ani notes were loud and repeated,reminding me somewhatof certain notesof the Willet, and were uttered on the wing as well as when perched. The bird also has a whining note and others that might be expressedas whew-whew. In Cuba this is called "Jewbird"and is quite common in many areas there. Cuban Nighthawk (Chordeilesminor gundlachiO.--Thediscovery and collection of birds of this race during the breedingseason on the Lower Keysis describedin The Auk, 60 (1): page 105,January, 1943. Althoughit is now believedthat this is the breedingrace on the Lower Keys,the actualfinding of eggsand further collect- ing is necessaryto substantiatethis statement. Their notesappear slightly different from those of the northern races. ArkansasKingbird (Tyrannusverticalis).--Although listed as a stragglerfrom the west,this speciesmight well be classedas a regular winter visitor along the keys. Birds have been recordednear the SevenMile Bridge, on Cudjoe Key, Key West, and on BocaGrande Key in the Key West Refuge. My earliestarrival date is Oc- tober 13, 1940,and my last date in the spring is April 1, 1939. They may alsobe seenfrom Novemberto March. Key West, being the terminus,so to speak,of the highwaykeys, is thereforea final gatheringplace for the winter of a numberof such species. This bird is frequently seenin the companyof the following species. GeneralNotes LI'Auk April Scissor-tailedFlycatcher (Muscivoraforficata).--This is another so-calledstraggler from the west and more commonduring the winter months than the ArkansasKing- bird. It is a delightful find for visiting bird students. My earliest record of arrival is October 20, 1940, and my last record on May 2, 1942. They have also been recorded in all the months from November to April. On December19, 1941,fifteen birds were countedin Key West, most of them about a cattle field near Fort Taylor where it was their customto congregateto feed on the many insectsthere. On and about the wiresand treesnear the postofficebuilding wasanother favorite gathering place. All my recordsare about Key West. Key West Vireo (Vireo griseusmaynardi).--This, the breedingrace of the White- eyedVireo alongthe Floridakeys, is apparentlya permanentresident. It is common on many of the keys and especiallyabout Key West, StockIsland, Boca Chica Key, and Big Pine and Nonamekeys. Like its northern relativesit is very tuneful; some notes remind one of certain calls of the catbird, towbee, wren and chat. One native calls this bird 'spider.' Black-whiskeredVireo (Vireo calidris barbatulus).--Asummer resident; my first recordeddate of arrival from the southis May 9, 1941,and my last in the fall, Sep- tember 4, 1942. The dark 'whiskermarks' are discernibleat closerange and differ- entiate it from the Red-eyedVireo. It was commonabout StockIsland, Big Pine, Sugarloafand Geiger'skeys, and also recordedon Hawk and Bay keys of the Great White Heron Refuge. Its song is somewhatsimilar to that of Vireo olivaceusbut appearedlouder and more 'jerky' and just as emphatic. GoldenWarbler (Denroicapetechia gundlachi).--The discovery of breedingbirds, nest and egg, and the collectionof male and female,which were identified by Dr. John W. Aldrich of the Fish and Wildlife Service,is recordedin The Auk, 59 (1): 114, January,1942. This occurredin June and July of 1941on the BayKeys of the Great White Heron Refuge. Sincethen, a male and female were seenon June 16, 1942, on these same keys, and on July 14, 1942, an adult female was noted on the same keys. On August 6, 1942, a male and female, as well as an immature bird, being fed by an adult, were found on Big Mullet Key in the Key West Refuge, which is severalmiles from the Bay Keys. A letter receivedfrom Mrs. FrancesHames states that she found one bird, in song,on one of the Bay Keyson May 30, 1943. I con- sider it, therefore, a regular nester on certain keys in that area.

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