1892.] NATURAL SCIENCES OF PHILADELPHIA. 151 



19. Plectrophenax nivalis (Linn.) Snow Bunting. 



There is a series of twelve Snow Buntings in the colleetiou, 

 including breeding males and females, moulting specimens, and 

 young in the first plumage. Two young birds were collected at 

 McCormick Bay, July 29, an adult male at Upernavik, July 1 

 and the rest at Disco, June 28 and 29 and August 11. 



The breeding birds sliow very distinctly the process of moulting 

 by the wearing away of the brown tips of the feathers. All the 

 feathers of the back are very much pointed in the middle and cut 

 away or concave on the sides, all the rusty borders which charac- 

 terize the winter specimens being worn off. Some specimens, how- 

 ever, show ragged remains of these borders on the coverts and 

 tertials. 



Two young birds of the year from McCormick Bay are strongly 

 tinged with buff on the lower back and rump as well as on the 

 under surface, while a young bird from Disco is much grayer. 



Adult birds collected August 11 at Disco are all well advanced 

 in their moult and the lower mandible is yellow instead of black as 

 in the breeding bird. The brown edgings to the feathers are rich 

 chocolate, very distinct from the faded buff brown of winter 

 examples from Pennsylvania. 



It is interesting to note that all but one of the adult birds 

 collected at Disco, August 11, have the wing and tail feathers com- 

 pletely grown and have about half the other feathers replaced by 

 the brown edged plumage, while birds of the year taken at the 

 same time and place have the wing feathers only partly grown and 

 have not begun to moult elsewhere. This fact may be of interest to 

 students of bird migration as it shows that the old birds were at 

 least ready for the southern journey before the young. 



The measurements of the breedins: birds are as follows : 



20. iJalcarius lapponicus (Linn.) Lapland Longspur. 



A series of eight Longspurs was procured at Disco, June 28 and 

 29 and August 11. Those collected on the last date had advanced 

 in their moult even farther than the Snow Buntings. The adults 

 were in complete winter garb with the exception of the tail feathers 

 some of which were not quite fully grown. 



