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LIST OF AND NOTES ON THE BIRDS OF THE ILES DES SAINTES, FRENCH WEST INDIES CHARLES VAURIE LES Saintes,a small archipelagothat lies south of Guadeloupe,has seldolnbeen visited by ornithologists.No list of its birdsseems to have beenpublished, although, to besure, 25 specieshave been mentioned froin theseislands by Noble (1916), Bond (1936, 1956), Danforth(1939), or Pinchonand Bon Saint-Come(1951). Three of thesewere recorded on doubtfulevidence and, pendingconfirmation, should be deletedfrom the list. Nineteen of the remaining 22 and an additional five were observedby me on 2-5 July 1960,when Mrs. Vaurie and I visitedthe FrenchWest Indiesfor the AmericanMuseum of Natural History. The speciesmentioned by Noble and Danforth were incorporatedin their reportson the birdsof Guadeloupe,those cited by Bondor Pinchonand Bon Saint-Comein generalworks on the birds of the West Indies. The birds reportedso far are listedbelow with a few notes. I aln grateful to James Bond for his very helpful advice, Eugene Eisenmannfor readingthe manuscript,and to the Gendarmerieof Basse Terre and Terre-de-haut for arranging our visit as there is no hotel in Les Saintes. Les Saintesare of volcanicorigin and are separatedfrom the Basse Terre in Guadeloupeby a stormychannel seven miles wide. They con- sist of two relativelylarge islandscalled Terre-de-bas and Terre-de-haut, the only islandsinhabited, and of six small islandsor islets, some of which appear to be the sites of sea-bird colonies. One of these, called La Redonde,lies only 300 metersoff Terre-de-hautbut, unfortunately, is quite inaccessibleas it risesperpendicularly out of the sea to a height of 46 metersand is poundedby huge waves that rise to nearly half its height. The top of La Redonde,which is about 170 meterswide, is alive all day with many seabirds. The other islets,which are probablyoccu- pied by birds also, are slightly lower than La Redondebut similar to it in structure. Terre-de-haut,the only island we visited, is five kilometerslong and variesfrom three quartersof a kilometerto two kilometersin width. The centralpart of the islandis relatively flat, and its coastlineis formed by two magnificentbeaches about one kilometer long. The beachon the lee of the island is quiet, lined by the street of the village and coconut trees;the oneto the windwardis very broad,backed by dunes,and swept by greatrollers. The islandof Dominica,16 milesaway, is clearlyvisible from it. Two large, shallow,brackish ponds are found on this part of 57 58 V^um•:, Birds of lies des 3'aintcs [ Auk [Vol. 78 the island,and one of theseis surroundedby extensiveflats that probably receiveshore birds and perhapsducks during the migration;but, so far, the only migrantnoted for Les Saintesis the Oven-bird(Seiurus auro- capillus). There are also several small, artificial ponds for watering cattle. The rest of Terre-de-hautis ruggedand formed by a seriesof trans- verse hills separatedby narrow, deep valleys, and the coastline,except at the westernend of the island,is very deeplyindented by numerous bays and coves. This western end is formed by a double-headedhill, called Le Chaineau,which rises to 309 meters (over 1,000 feet) and drops into the valley by a seriesof cliffs or steepslopes. These cliffs are the homeof a colonyof the Antillean Martin (Pro•7nedominicensis) and of one pair of American Kestrels (Falco sparverius). Le Chameau and the hill facing it acrossthe valley are heavilywooded, many of the trees being large but giving way on the lower slopesto densescrub consistingchiefly of mesquite. The floor of the valley is given over to pasture,one or two small gardens,and grovesof mangos,citrus, or other leafy trees. The westernend of Terre-de-hautis the least disturbedand supports a good bird life. Some species,such as the hawk, pigeon,two of the doves,flycatcher, bullfinch, and PlumbeousWarbler, were seenonly there. On the rest of the islandthe vegetationbecomes more meager and the birds fewer. The many large iguanas(It7uana delicatissma), whichare foundin its valley,add much to its charmand interest.They are not molestedand sun themselvesor stroll about unconcernedly.A snake,endemic to Les Saintes,is foundthere also but wasnot seenby us. Terre-de-hautis very beautifuland interesting. It has preservedits fauna, sincethe mongoose,which has causedso much destructionin the rest of the West Indies, has never beenintroduced, and as its inhabitants haveshown little interestin exploitingthe island. The peopleare all descendants of Breton seamen and fisherfolk to whom the sea is home and living,although some older men make a desultoryeffort at cultiva- tion and keep a few cows,sheep, and goats. Terre-de-basis muchmore regular in shapeand uniform in its topog- raphy thornis Terre-de-haut. It is squarish,measuring about three kilometers on a side, and rises to 293 meters. It is said to be more woodedthan Terre-de-haut, a fact attestedto by the mapof vegetation. Our visitcoincided with a periodof greatactivity on the part of the birdsand insects,as the rainshad startedonly about two weeksbefore, afterfive months of drought.Some birds were very vocal, and I observed chasing,suggesting territorial activity, although,no doubt,some had Auk 1 V^umE, Birds of lles des Saintes 59 Vol. 78 1 started to nest earlier as Bond writes to me that "The height of the breedingseason in the LesserAntilles is in May, and many birds nest there in April." In the list below, I have onfitted three birds that were included by Danforth (1939) becausethey had beenmentioned from Les Saintesby Noble (1916). These are: Sula leucogaster(Brown Booby), S. sula (Red-footed Booby), and Thalasseusmaximus (Royal Tern). But Noble did not collector see thesebirds, stating that they had been re- ported to him by fishermen. Danforth questionedthe validity of two of these records,and it seemssignificant that Noble omitted all three birds from his list, •nentioningthem merely (with reservation)in the introductionto his paper. Danforthvisited Terre-de-haut on the afternoonof 5 July 1937,spend- ing most of the morning on Terre-de-bas,or on the stoneday and month we visited Terre-de-haut. I have, therefore,quoted his observations when they differ from mine to someextent, and have also mentionedhis records for Terre-de-bas, as all the records from that island in the litera- ture, with the exceptionof Crotophagaani, are to be foundin his paper. ANNOTATED L•ST OF THE B•RDS OF LES SAINTES l'ui•nus lherminieri, Audubon'sShearwater. Several seenbetween Terre-de-haut and Guadeloupeand also flying to and from La Redonde. Not recordedpreviously. Pha•thon aethereus,Red-billed Tropic-bird. Reported by Danforth (1939) and Bond (in littO. ? Pha•thon lepturus, White-tailed Tropic-bird. Six birds were seen flying off La Redoride,but too far away to be identified as to specieswith certainty. The light was good, however, and I noted that they appearedto be all white on the back. After comparingskins, and beforereading Danforth and hearingfrom Bond,I •elt confidentthat they were P. lepturu,•. But Bond writes to me that the only species he observedwas P. aethereus. The latter is also the only tropic bird reported by Dan forth. Pelecanusoccidentalis, Brown Pelican. Singlebirds and bandsof three, perhaps vagrants. Not recordedpreviously. Fre•ata ma•nificens,Magnificent Frigate-bird. Common,but Danforth saw only one eachat Terre-de-haut and Terre-de-bas. They are tamed also by the fishermen, and birds are found in the village. ButoridesviresceJts, Green Heron. Commonand Noble (1916) reportssix adult and half-grown birds taken during the first week in September,but only singlebirds were seen by Danforth on Terre-de-haut and Terre-de-bas. Falco sparverius,American Kestrel. Two pairs in the valley at the westernend of the island. This valley is divided in the middle by a small ridge, which consti- tutes apparently the limit of the territories as the birds were not seen to cross it. One pair had youngand was seencarrying food to the nest,the prey consistingon all occasionsof lizards. The nest was in leafy trees at the base of the cliff, or perhapsOn the cliff that was difficult of approach. The martins mentionedabove and the kestrel paid no apparent attention to one another, but the latter was put 60 V^URtE,Birds of lles des Saintes [Vol.[ Auk 78 to flight once by an Emerald-throated Hummingbird. Danforth collected this speciesalso on Terre-de-bas. 3'ter•zadou9allii, Roseate Tern. Common. Danforth did not find it on Terre-de- haut, but stateshe "observedmany, apparentlynesting on Terre-de-Bas and Grand l let." The latter is the largest of the smaller islands. 3'teresafuscata, Sooty Tern. Commonand the most abundantof the terns. Bands of about 150 individualswere seen pursuing schoolsof small fish in companywith a few Brown Noddies. It was very abundant also off La Redonde,but Danforth saw only three at Terre-de-haut and apparentlynone at Terre-de-bas. The Sooty is tamed by the natives also, and pets xvere seen on the doorstepsof houses. •4•oiis stolidus, Brown Noddy. Common. Danforth states he "found it nesting commouly on Grand Ilet and on the cliffs of Terre-de-bas, and observeda few (apparently not nesting) around Terre-de-Haut." Columba squamosa,Scaly-•aped Pigeon. Two flying together. Danforth saw "a few" on Terre-de-haut and says it was common on Terre-de-bas. Zenaida a,trita, Zenaida Dove. Common. Not recorded for Terre-de-bas. Columbigalli•tapasserina, Ground Dove. The amost abundant Columbidae and seeu throughout the island. Danforth says it is "fairly commou"on Terre-de-bas. The birds of this family seem to be the only ones that are hunted, people coming over from Guadeloupefor this purpose. Geotrygon•3,stacea, MoustachedQuail Dove. This bird, which is recordedby Bond, was not seen,but its distinctivebooming note was heard from the woods on Le Chaineau.

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