FAUNA OF THE ALEUTIAN ISLANDS AND ALASKA PENINSULA 227 



on Nagai, Shumagin Islands, and, on the next evening, several 

 thrushes were noted in the alders at Sand Point, Popof Island. 

 On May 24, 1937, we heard several thrushes singing on Dolgoi 

 Island, west of the Shumagins. 



In 1911, Wetmore found hermit thrushes to be "tolerably com- 

 mon" in the alders at King Cove and in the alders at the east 

 base of Frosty Peak, and he obtained specimens. Gianini (1917) 

 reports that he observed the bird at Stepovak Bay. 



I found the hermit thrush in the alders back of Izembek Bay, 

 early in June 1925. One of these birds was in the last alder 

 patch at the head of the valley below Aghileen Pinnacles. Two 

 or three thrushes were heard singing at the base of Frosty Peak 

 on July 3. 



On July 15, Donald Stevenson heard thrushes singing on the 

 rocky slopes of Amak Island ; although he had a distant view of 

 them, they were too wary for him to obtain a specimen. There 

 is no shrubbery on Amak, the tallest vegetation being Heracleum 

 lanatum. 



Beals and Longworth, in their field report of 1941, on Unimak 

 Island, stated that they heard the first thrush of the spring at 

 False Pass on May 12. Next day, they saw five of these birds in 

 the alder thickets. Between May 12 and June 17, "they could 

 be heard whenever we patrolled the valley floors and even up to 

 5-6000 ft. elevation." No specimens were taken, but "their song, 

 habits and appearance are the same as our Russet-backed thrushes 

 of Southeastern Alaska." Later, in May 1944, Gabrielson ob- 

 tained a specimen at King Cove, and, in 1946, he took specimens 

 from Popof and Aghiyuk Islands. 



The hermit thrush is most common in this region, and the lack 

 of conflicting information leads us to suppose that it is the hermit 

 thrush that is most common on Unimak Island. However, speci- 

 mens are needed for positive identification. 



Nelson (1887) has discussed the impropriety of assigning 

 Gmelin's name "Turdus aoonakiscensis" to this bird, the type of 

 which was supposed to have come from Unalaska. He pointed 

 out that no other naturalist has observed it there. However, we 

 found the hermit thrush on such barren islands as Amak and 

 Dolgoi, and (apparently) as far west as Unimak; therefore, it is 

 not at all improbable that a specimen could have been obtained 

 on Unalaska. But Nelson's thesis remains correct, especially since 

 he demonstrates that the original description was inadequate. 



