NOTES ON SOME BIRDS IN WEST-CENTRAL PER6 MANUEL A. PLENGE P.O. Box 2490 Lima 1, Peril Recent information of unusual interest ob- August 1972, when I picked up two corpses at Playa tained by different ornithological workers that La Chira, just south of Lima. A few kilometers adds to the knowledge of Peruvian bird dis- farther south at Playa Conchan a third corpse was found on 27 August by Dan A. Tallman. tribution is presented herein. West-central *Puchyptilu belcheri. Slender-billed Prion. A skele- Peru comprises the Department of Lima and ton and complete wing of this species was found by the adjacent Departments of Ancash to the Ashmole and Tovar CH. Tovar 1969) in August north and of Ica to the south, from sea level 1968, at Laguna Grande, Department ’ of Ica. -On 22 July 1972, Hughes (pers. comm. ) advised me to the continental divide. The birds of the of the nassage of urions through Mollendo. Depart- Department of Lima are rather well known ment of ‘ Arequipa. -Unable to make a search myself, due to the publications of Koepcke (1964, I requested Michael Gochfeld to look for them. On 1970). Nevertheless, nine species new to the 30 July, he brought me two skulls found at Playa Department (marked by an asterisk), in- Villa, a beach south of Lima. He, Tallman, and lohn P. ONeill’ collected additional material on 1 cluding one entirely new to Peru, have either August, including two fresh female specimens been collected or reliably observed in the last ( LSUMZ 71364 and 71580). At Caiiete. southern 4 years. Department of Lima, on 26 August, ONeill’ found The El Nifio phenomenon, a periodic re- three more corpses and Gochfeld found two others on the beach at Bujama Baja, 95 km S of Lima. I placement of the cool Peru Current by warm searched several beaches from Lima N to Huacho on surface waters of subtropical or tropical origin 12 August without results. Identification of this and ( Murphy 1936; Zuta and Guillen 1970), was the previous species has been confirmed by Raymond unusually strong in 1972, advancing south A. Paynter, Jr., from skulls I forwarded to him. along the coast and reaching extreme southern Collected material is deposited at the Louisiana State University Museum of Zoology, the Museum of Com- Peru. The main effect of El NiAo was to alter parative Zoology, and The American Museum of Nat- the &mate by extending the summer (nor- ural History. mally December to April) by 4 months. Some Surkidiomis melunotos. Comb Duck. On 21 No- North American migrants may have been vember 1971, at Puerto Viejo, a marshy area next favored by this climatic change, which may to the ocean, 75 km S of Lima, Richard A. Plenge saw a solitary bird of this species in a lagoon. The account for the extension of their known bird, which he collected the next day, was a female. winter ranges. The accidental presence of While on a hunting trip at Cerro Azul, N of Cafiete, southern migrants is more difficult to explain, Department of Lima, on 28 November 1971, I also unless one assumes that the lack or reduction collected a female and saw two more individuals flying. Local hunters were not familiar with this of suitable food as a consequence of El Nifio species. Koepcke (1970) considered it “very rare” stimulates wandering by seabirds as well as in the Department of Lima and its inclusion in her death from starvation or disease. list appears to have been based on records from In recent years the number of ornithological Laguna de Villa (Ortiz de la Puente 1952). The new students and visitors coming to Peru has in- localities are the southernmost for the west coast of South America. creased. Their activities and those of a small *Zonibyr modestus. Rufous-chested Dotterel. On number of residents in Peru may in part ac- 10 June 1972, while observing stragglers of North count for the observations of birds previously American migrant shorebirds at Playa Ventanilla, a beach 20 km N of Toree Chavez International Air- regarded as very rare and possibly overlooked. port, Lima, I saw a plover-like bird in breeding The authority used for the scientific and plumage, feeding in brackish ponds and on mud English names is Meyer de Schauensee (1970). flats. I observed it again on the morning of 17 June, and realizing it was this species, I collected it. In SPECIES ACCOUNTS the austral winter this species normally migrates LIP the west coast of South America as far north as *Pachyptila desolata. Dove Prion. This species Atacama, Chile (Johnson 1965), and on the east and the next have proved to be regular seasonal coast north to SBo Vicente. Brazil (Pinto 1964). migrants to Mollendo, Department of Arequipa, in Some weeks before I sighted this bird, the coast southern Per& (Hughes 1970, pers. comm.). With of southern Chile was hit by severe rain storms. In the exceution of a fresh snecimen found bv N. Philin order to avoid the storms, the bird may have flown Ashmole- and Humberto Tovar S. (II. Tovar 1969j north and then followed migrating North American at Laguna Grande, northern shore of Bahia de La In- shorebirds to central Peru. The specimen, a female dependencia, Department of Ica, in August 1969, no (LSUMZ 71365), was prepared by ONeill’ and de- records farther north had been obtained until 6 posited at the Louisiana State University Museum of [3261 The Condor 7&326-330, 1974 NOTES ON BIRDS IN WEST-CENTRAL PER0 327 Zoology. This is the first record for Peni and also appearance of the bill and legs. When the bird was the northernmost for the species. With the possible forced to fly, the white wing patches, the white rump, exception of the Tawny-throated Dotterel (Oreopholus and wedge-shaped tail were conspicuous. Protrusion ruficollis), no other South American breeding shore- of the central tail feathers was not observed. Pearson bird is known to migrate to coastal Per& agreed that it must have been an immature of this Heteroscelus incanus. Wandering Tattler. This species. Records from Peni are from Callao (twice) species has been previously reported twice from Peni. and An& (Hellmayr and Conover 1948), both lo- Murphy ( 1936:2?5) mentions it at Bahia de Paracas, calities in the Department of Lima. Denartment of Ica. and H. Tovar ( 1968) near Larus pip&an. Franklins’ Gull. Large concentra- Huacho, Departmen; of Lima. At Playa Ventanilla, tions of this species are a common sight in PenY Department bf Lima, on 26 August 1972, I saw one On 10 November 1968, however, at Playa Jaguay, individual feedinn in brackish ponds. Perhaps this a beach north of Chincha, Department of Ica, Mr. new record may be attributed to the abnormal weather and Mrs. G. W. Cottrell, Dr. and Mrs. Raymond A. conditions caused by El Nirio. Paynter, Jr., and I saw one exceptional concentration Catoptrophorus semipalmatus. Willet. Below lati- that we estimated at one million birds. Most were tude 6”s this species is a rare migrant, having been preening or resting on the sand; others were feeding, renorted in Pe& onlv from the mouth of the Rio sitting on the water, or flying. From 3 February to L&&, Department df Lima ( Koepcke 1961), La 21 April 1973, I observed a flock of approximately Puntilla, Bahia de Paracas, Department of Ica (Ash- 70 birds on the Rio Rimac at Chosica, Department mole 1970; Koepcke 1961), and Mollendo, Depart- of Lima. 50 km inland at an elevation of 900 m. ment of Arequipa (Hughes 1970). At Playa Mama- They appeared to be waiting for refuse to be dumped cona. north of the mouth of the Rio Lurin, Lt. directly into the river. They occurred in diminishing Edward Kaufmann USNR and I saw one individual numbers in the cultivated fields to an elevation of in a flock of Whimbrels (Numenius phaeopus) on 1500 m. Similar behavior has been observed in 25 October 1970. Arequipa, approximately 80 km inland at an elevation Cal&s a&a. Sanderling. Along the coast of Per& of 2378 m. They were first observed by Hughes this species migrates frequently in flocks of more (pers. comm.) on 27 December 1972. Newspapers than one hundred birds and rarely of several thou- later reported thousands of them at Arequipa and sand. At Puerto Viejo, Department of Lima, on 21 also at Maca, an Andean town in the Province of November 1970, I observed the arrival of small Caylloma, Department of Arequipa, approximately flocks for about 3 hr. Where the waves receded, 130 km inland at an elevation of 2500 m. A previous they formed a vast concentration 1500 m in length occurrence was observed in Arequipa by Hughes in and 30 rows deep. At sunset they suddenly took November 1966. In the Department of Piura, north- to the air together, nearly blotting but the sun and ern Per& David N. Ewert and Weslev E. Lanvon the horizon. -They. moved like a wave, straightened observed a few birds along the coast in the last wkek out. descended to water level. and flew south. After of February 1973. Small numbers were seen inland, measuring the area they had occupied, I estimated concentrated near dumps and irrigated river valleys. their number at 450,000 individuals. Five individuals were also found just W of Chilaco, Limosa haemustica. Hudsonian Godwit. In Per& 32 km NE of Sullana, approximately 80 km inland this species has been reported only from Bahia San at an elevation of 100 m. Distances given are the Juan, Department of Ica ( MacFarlane 1887); Playa shortest distance from the sea, but because of the Mamacona (ONeill’ 1969) and Cafiete (Koepcke coastal desert, I presume that the gulls fly longer 1970), Department of Lima.