BY ROBERT K. SELANDER, RICHARD F. JOHNSTON, B. J. WILKS, AND GERALD G. RAUN University of Kansas Lawrence 1962 University of Kansas Publications Museum of Natural History Volume 12, No. 7, pp. 309-345, pls. 5-8. June 18, 1962 University of Kansas Publications, Museum of Natural History Editors: E. Raymond Hall, Chairman, Henry S. Fitch, Theodore H. Eaton, Jr. Volume 12, No. 7, pp. 309-345 Published June 18, 1962 University of Kansas Lawrence, Kansas PRINTED BY JEAN M. NEIBARGER, STATE PRINTER TO

BY ROBERT K. SELANDER, RICHARD F. JOHNSTON, B. J. WILKS, and GERALD G. RAUN Lying between the Gulf of Mexico and the Laguna Madre de Tamaulipas is a narrow barrier island extending from the delta of the Rio Grande south for 140 miles to within 185 miles of Tampico, Tamaulipas ( Plate 5 ). This island, like most of coastal Tamaulipas, has been all but neglected by zoological collectors. Consequently, little is known of the kinds, distribution, and seasonal status of the vertebrates occurring ther

We are especially indebted to Dr. Charles H. Simpson of Sinton, Texas, who generously placed at our disposal his truck, a four-wheel drive "Land Rover," without which travel on the island would have been difficult. We also acknowledge a loan of field equipment provided by Dr. Clarence Cottam, Director of the Welder Wildlife Research Foundation, Sinton, Texas. Financial support for the present research was provided by grants from the National Science Foundation to The University of Texas (G 15882

The barrier island of Tamaulipas geologically and ecologically resembles Padre Island, of the Gulf coast of lower Texas, north of the mouth and delta of the Rio Grande. South of the delta, the island in Tamaulipas is a narrow strip of sand less than a mile in average width and is broken by a series of narrow inlets or "passes" through which water from the Gulf of Mexico mingles with that of the Laguna Madre de Tamaulipas. The passes are subject to recurrent opening and closing. North of the mout

We reached Washington Beach from Matamoros on July 6, and drove to a point approximately 33 miles south on the beach, where we made Camp 1 on the east side of large dunes 400 yards from the surf. From this camp we worked the beach and dunes and also visited alkaline flats adjacent to the Laguna Madre. On the afternoon of July 8, we drove south along the beach and established Camp 2 on the south side of the Third Pass, approximately 73 miles south of Washington Beach. We had intended to go farthe

The ornithologist H. E. Dresser (1865-1866) worked in southern Texas and at Matamoros, Tamaulipas, in 1863, and on one occasion reached the mouth of the Rio Grande ("Boca Grande"). He did not visit the barrier island or the Laguna Madre de Tamaulipas. In their extensive travels through México, E. W. Nelson and E. A. Goldman made collections at three localities in the coastal region of Tamaulipas but did not reach the barrier island (Goldman, 1951). Goldman collected at Altamira, near Tampico, fr

Catalogue numbers in the following accounts are those of the Museum of Natural History, The University of Kansas. Gopherus berlandieri Agassiz: Texas Tortoise.—A pelvic girdle and complete shell with a few attached scutes (63494) were found in stabilized dunes at Camp 1 on July 7, and tracks were seen in the same area. Fragments of two other shells (63493, 63495) were found on sand flats between active dunes at Camp 1. Holbrookia propinqua propinqua Baird and Girard: Keeled Earless Lizard.—This

The known vertebrate fauna of the barrier island of Tamaulipas consists of one species of tortoise, two species of lizards, at least one (unidentified) species of snake, 49 species of birds (48 recorded by us and the Semipalmated Sandpiper), and 12 species of mammals. This is clearly a depauperate fauna, such as is characteristic of islands generally, and indicates that the peninsular nature of the northern part of the barrier island is of relatively small consequence in determining presence or

Aldrich, J. W. , and Duvall, A. J. 1958. Distribution and migration of races of the mourning dove. Condor, 60:108-128. Amadon, D. , and Eckelberry, D. R. 1955. Observations on Mexican birds. Condor, 57:65-80. American Ornithologists' Union Check-list Committee 1957. Check-list of North American Birds. Lord Baltimore Press, Baltimore, Maryland. xiii-691 pp. Axtell, R. W. 1954. The systematic relationships of certain lizards in two species groups of the genus Holbrookia . M. A. Thesis, Department

Institutional libraries interested in publications exchange may obtain this series by addressing the Exchange Librarian, University of Kansas Library, Lawrence, Kansas. Copies for individuals, persons working in a particular field of study, may be obtained by addressing instead the Museum of Natural History, University of Kansas, Lawrence, Kansas. There is no provision for sale of this series by the University Library, which meets institutional requests, or by the Museum of Natural History, whic