Journal of the Trinidad and Tobago Field Naturalists' Club
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Journal of the Trinidad and Tobago Field Naturalists' Club Natura Maxime Miranda in Minimis Published July 1986. LIVING WORLD is published biennially by the Trinidad and Tobago Field Naturalists' Club. This issue is dedicated to Rtchard ffrench. All rights reserved. Type·setting, design and page mechanicals by 8M Publica· tions, 20 Collens Road, Maraval, Trinidad. Dedication RICHARD FFRENCH was born in England and shortly after gra duating from Oxford University came to the West Indies with his wife Margaret. He lived in Barbados for three years and then came to Trinidad to teach at St Peter's School, Pointe-a'-Pierre. His interest in birds was alreadY well developed bu t so was his interest in music and he contributed much to the cultural life of Trinidad and Tobago in both of these fields. He is a past president of the Trinidad and Tobago Field Naturalists' Club and edited its jour nal for a number of years. He was also chairman of the Board of Management of the Asa Wright Nature Centre for some years and served as a member of the board after his term as chairman. From his arrival in Trinidad to his departure in April 1985 he studied the avifauna of our two islands and produced his Guide to the Birds of Trinidad and Tobago in 1973. It is now in its fourth edition. A smaller (and cheaper) guide to the common birds has just been published and shDuld introduce the study of birds to an even wider pUblic. He has published several papers in this journal and in others and with Peter Bacon wrote Nature Trails of Trinidad. In all of these endeavours he has been ably helped and encouraged by his wife Margaret and we wish both all possible success in whatever new ventures they undertake in their native land. ·In recognition of his contribution to the study of natural his tory this issue of Living World is.gratefully dedicated to him. 3 Contents Cover Front: Anolis chrysolepis plalliceps, the only native anole (Photo by Hans Boos) DEDICATION ............................ PAGE 3 Back: A peripatus from Mt. Aripo new to the island (Photo by MOVEMENTS OF SEABIRDS OFF CROWN POINT, TOBAGO V.M. St. J. Read) By Richard ffrench ......................... PAGE 5 ADDITIONAL NOTES ON THE BIRDS OF TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO By Richard ffrench ......................... PAGE 9 CHRISTMAS COUNTS OF BIRDS IN TRINIDAD 1969-1975 AND 1981-1983 By Richard ffrench ........................ PAGE 12 WHY DO NIGHTJARS SIT ON THE ROADS AT NIGHT? By Victor C. Quesne1. .......................PAGE19 THE UNDERGROUND LIFE OF THE TRINIDAD WORM LIZARD AMPHISBAENA ALBA The Trinidad and By John Riley ............................ PAGE 24 NOTES ON CURIOUS METHODS OF LOCOMOTION IN TWO Tobago Field IGUANIDS FROM TRINIDAD, WEST INDIES By julius O. Boos ......................... PAGE 26 Naturalists' Club A PRELIMINARY STUDY OF CULEX MOSQUITOES ATTRACTED TO A TURTLE IN TRINIDAD, W.l. By Dave D. Chadee, Robin C. Persad, Wayne Ramnath and THE Trinidad Field Naturalists' Club was founded on the 10th R. Ganesh .............................. PAGE 27 July 1891. Its name was changed to the present one in 1974. The objects of the club are to bring together persons AN ONYCHOPHORAN FROM THE SUMMIT OF MT ARIPO, interested in the study of natural history, the diffusion of the TRINIDAD, WITH NOTES ON OTHER ANIMALS FROM knowledge thereof and the conservation of nature. THAT LOCALITY At present the club has an enrolment of over four hundred By V.M. St. J. Read ......................... PAGE 28 members comprised of nature-lovers and professional and amateur naturalists. NOTES ON HIE LIFE HISTORY OF CATOBLEPIA Monthly lecture meetings are held at St. Mary's College BERECYNTHIA BERECYNTHIA (CRAMER) (LEPIDOPTERA: on the second Thursday of the month while field excursions are BRASSOLIDAE) held on the last Sunday of each month, except December, when By julius O. Boos ......................... PAGE31 no official club activities are organised. Membership is open to all residents of Trinidad and Tobago, THE SKIPPER BUTTER FILES (HESPERIIDAE) OF TRINIDAD. of at least fifteen years of age, who subscribe to the objects of the PART 4: PYRGINAE (SECOND SECTION) club. By M.J.W. Cock .......................... PAGE 33 The club's management committee is: Dr. V.c. Quesnel, President; T. F. Farrell, Vice-president; Luisa Zuniaga, Honorary THE FAMILY ARISTOLOCHIACEAE IN TRINIDAD WITH Secretary; Lana Salandy, Honorary Assistant Secretary; John SPECIAL REFERENCE TO ITS MEDICINAL USES, ITS Hilton, Honorary Treasurer; Colin Agostini, Glenn Wilkes, FOLKLORE AND ITS USE AS A LARVAL FOODPLANT BY Graham White. Its editorial committee is: Victor Quesnel, Julian P APILIONIDAE Duncan, Richard ffrench, Hans Boos. By julius O. Boos ......................... PAGE 48 All enquiries concerning the club or its journal shOUld be addressed to the Honorary Secretary, 1 Errol Park Road, St. BOOK REVIEW .......................... PAGE 52 Ann's, Trinidad W.l. 4 I Movements of seabirds off Crown Point, Tobago By Richard [french Beech Ridge, Bussage, Stroud, Glos., England VERY little has been done to date in Trinidad and Tobago in the Dividing the day into four sections (A - D), denoting early way of in-depth studies of seabirds, in spite of the fact that morning, late morning, early afternoon and late afternoon, - Tobago in particular possesses what are probably the most in each case within half an hour of 07000, 1030, 1400 and 1730 important seabird breeding colonies in the south Caribbean. Un - I recorded over a 30-minute period all seabirds within my view, fortunately such studies require plenty of time, since by their na noting whether they were moving to the north or south of my ture seabirds move about a lot in somewhat inaccessible areas, position. and in almost every case the researcher requires a boat. Since I I covered each section of the day three times within a fort have lacked both these essentials, I have had to content myself night over approximately the same period of the year (early over the last 27 years with random observations, some banding at April) for three consecutive years, so the results (Tables 1 - 3) the colonies, and a study of moult that bogged me down in awe should give adequate coverage of seabird movements just off some statistics. But I have immensely enjoyed myself working western Tobago during early April. with seabirds, especially on Tobago. Although some birds are likely to have been counted more Here I present some observations, based on some systematic than once in a 30-minute period, as they first flew in one direc coast watches at Crown Point, Tobago during 1979, 1980 and tion, then returned the other way, I am convinced that this was 1981. Sometimes one cannot immediately recognise the signi extremely uncommon. Such behaviour would indicate actual ficance of certain statistics, so I include them in detail, at least foraging. But when seabirds are actually feeding, or going directly partly in the hope that others may be stimulated to extend or to a shoal, they fly faster and more purposefully than usual, in develop future watches in a more meaningful way. a manner that is instantly recognisable to fishermen or those experienced with seabirds. The great majority of the birds that I METHODS counted seemed to me to be cruising steadily and unhurriedly, as if journeying to a distant point. stationed myself with binoculars at Sandy Point beach on In order to set up some comparison with the April figures, I the extreme western tip of Tobago (see Figure 1), so as to gain an also watched twice for 30-minute periods in December and 0 unobstructed view of the seacoast over nearly 180 . Visibility January. The figures from these "winter" watches (not included was almost always very good, so with lOx binoculars I could scan here) showed a complete absence of four of the eight species, the horizon and recognise any birds within 1 V2 kilometres of the namely the gulls, Sandwich, Roseate and Noddy Terns, and far shore. fewer numbers of most of the other species. Only the Royal Tern and the Brown Pelican were well represented in December. FIG. 1 To Pigeon Pt. RESULTS 1. The observations (Tables 1-3) show that eight species of sea bird were involved in the movements past Crown Point. Al though some birds were seen passing at distances up to 1 V2 km from shore, the majority passed fairly close to shore. Brown Pelicans (Pelecanus occidentalis), Laughing Gulls (Larus articilla), Royal and Sandwich Terns (Sterna maxima and S. sandvicensis) mostly passed within 200 metres, with Roseate Terns (Sterna dougallii) a little farther out. Brown Noddies (A nous stolidus) 1 :25,000 and Brown Boobies (Sula leucogaster) were mainly seen about Hotel s View poi nt 600 metres out, while Magnificent Frigatebirds (Fregata magni [icens) were the most variable, often passing over at a consider L________________________ Airport Runway _ able height. Very few of the seabirds, other than some frigate birds, crossed the point over land, SQ those seen from the view o point probably constitute the vast majority of seabirds moving Buoy north or south in that area. CROWN PO INT, TOBAGO. 5 TABLE 1 Movements of seabirds at Crown Point during April 1 - 14, 1979 Direction Periods of Day Species A B C D Total Laughing Gull N 146 218 418 16 6 9 19 39 72 340 432 322 2051 S 16 22 9 11 3 42 40 145 21 44 13 367 Royal Tern N 36 21 10 15 4 8 25 7 54 28 13 222 S 1 4 3 2 5 4 5 4 3 4 36 Sandwich Tern N 2 8 6 18 S 7 9 Roseate Tern N 26 26 S 3 17 4 2 2 29 Brown Noddy N 6 3 4 14 S 1 2 Brown Pelican N 20 21 12 1 8 3 15 11 92 S 3 5 7 6 3 1 2 21 6 5 60 Magnificent Frigatebird N 4 3 3 8 15 33 2 10 2 3 6 89 S 3 2 5 4 6 4 7 31 Brown Booby N 7 9 10 9 2 69 3 113 S 14 3 10 22 14 1 64 TABLE 2 Movements of seabirds at Crown Point during April 6 - 19, 1980 Direction Periods of Day Species A B C D Total Laughing Gull N 27 45 52 6 11 20 19 5 14 175 77 109 560 S 1 5 27 7 2 5 23 34 35 2 16 3 160 Royal Tern N 10 26 43 3 4 13 9 7 6 24 21 15 181 S 5 7 2 3 5 5 3 4 4 11 50 Sandwich Tern N 2 S 4 6 Roseate Tern N 2 21 4 5 6 39 S 4 7 3 14 I Brown Noddy N 4 7 1 S I 1 6 Brown Pelican N 11 6 8 4 2 2 5 4 2 4 6 55 S 7 7 4 10 6 4 4 1 33 23 26 125 Magnificent Frigatebird N.