The ruff (Pavoncella pugnax) in Indiana

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4-IO

GeneralNotes.

[^

^t^k

The

California Partridge ₍Callipepla californica) in

Los

Angeles County, California.

—

^In ^the A. O. U. Check-Listfor 1895, therangeof this speciesisgivenas : "Coastregion ofCalifornia,southto Monterey."

Mr.H. S. Swarthsent

me some

timeagoseveral specimensof partridges, which helabelled Callipepla californicavallicola,and

among them

there

isa typical californica. It was takenatSan Fernando,

Los

AngelesCo., Cal., on Oct. 1, 1901, and is No. 2152of Mr. Swarth's catalogue. This recordextends therange of this partridge about 250 milestothe south- ward.

— Arthur

T.

Wayne, Mount

Pleasant,S. C.

The

Ruff {Pavoncellapugnax) in Indiana.

— The

celebrated

Kankakee

MarshesatEnglish Lake, Indiana,haveyielded recordsof several speci-

mens

ofthe English

Widgeon,

butIcan

now

record thecaptureofastill rarer visitorfromthe Old World,the Ruff.

While

visitingtheEnglish

Lake

Shooting and Fishing

Club

onApril 12, 1905,1

examined

a

number

ofducksandshore birds which had been killed thatday by Mr.

Wm. M.

Derby, Jr., of Chicago.

The

latter consisted principally of

Summer

Yellow-legsand Pectoral Sandpipers, but there was one specimenin the bagwhichpuzzledme. Mr.

Derby

had been hunting ducksinthemarsh, andwhile

moving

from onepointtoanother hefiredinto a flock ofshore birds which flew past his boat, killing several "grass birds " and the specimen in question. Mr.

Derby

very generously presented

me

with thebird, andafter

comparing

itwithseveraldescriptionsIfeltassuredas to its identity, butI

am

under obligations to

my

brother, Walter Deane, and Dr. Chas.

W. Richmond

who, after comparing the skin with other specimens captured in North America, in the collections of William Brewster andthe Smithsonian Institution,pronounced ^it a typical Ruff, though,as is so characteristic with the species, they ^differ

somewhat

in size and plumage.

The

specimen

was

in moult, pin feathers being conspicuous onthehead andneck.

On

dissection itprovedto beamale, though thetestes werebut slightlydeveloped.

As

amatterof reference

I append _(p. ₄₁₁₎ ascompletea^list of all North

American

capturesas I

have been abletofind.

Dr.

Richmond

writes

me

thatoneofthe specimens recordedby Board-

man

in his list of 1862,

"one

or two instances," is in the Smithsonian Collection. Thisisprobably thefirstrecord forNorth America. In his

'Catalogue of Canadian Birds,' Pt. 1, p. 177, 1900, Mr.

John Macoun

recordstwospecimens, amaleand female, shot on TorontoIsland,Ont., butMr._J. H.

Fleming

informs

me

that the femaleprovestobe aBartra-

mian

Sandpiper. Mr.

Macoun

isalso in error ingivingthe dateofcap- ture ofthemaleas 1875, for it was taken in 1882,and is sorecordedin

'

The

Auk,'Vol. II, p. 336, 18S5,

when

at that time in the collection of Mr.

John Young

ofToronto,Ont.

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Vol.

XX

7905

"]

^General ^Notes.

4

^II