. Department circular. Agriculture. 23 species, and in the finer points of classification ornithologists do not always agree; also there is a constant evolution going on in nature. Manv of the races now recognized mav be species in the making. If for any reason the connecting links in the chain of subspecies between the pallid or desert song sparrow and the Aleutian song sparrow had disappeared, these two birds would probably be recognized as well-marked Two races of the same species — the pallid song sparrow and the Aleutian song sparrow. Years ago the heath hen (now extinct except
. Department circular. Agriculture. 23 species, and in the finer points of classification ornithologists do not always agree; also there is a constant evolution going on in nature. Manv of the races now recognized mav be species in the making. If for any reason the connecting links in the chain of subspecies between the pallid or desert song sparrow and the Aleutian song sparrow had disappeared, these two birds would probably be recognized as well-marked Two races of the same species — the pallid song sparrow and the Aleutian song sparrow. Years ago the heath hen (now extinct except on the island of Martha's Vineyard, Massachusetts) and the prairie chicken were considered by Audubon as one species, and described as the pinnated grouse. Since that time all connecting links betw^een the eastern bird and the western bird have been extirpated, and now we have tw^o distinct species. On the other hand, the western meadowlark, Sturnella negleda of Audubon, is now considered by some ornithologists to be no more than a race of Sturnella magna, of which we may perhaps have to record three principal North American forms :^ Sturnella magna magna^ ' other races have been described, but they are mainly birds of the southwest or of Mexico and Central Please note that these images are extracted from scanned page images that may have been digitally enhanced for readability - coloration and appearance of these illustrations may not perfectly resemble the original Massachusetts. Dept. of Agriculture. Boston, Mass.
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