FAUNA OF THE ALEUTIAN ISLANDS AND ALASKA PENINSULA 259 



snow fields were overgrown by low grass. In one of these a nest was found 

 which contained five young three days old. The nest was in a crevice in 

 some rocks that was too small to admit my hand until some overhanging 

 moss was removed. 



Thus, we know that the eastern snow bunting nests in suitable 

 places on Kodiak Island and at the base of Alaska Peninsula, 

 westward as far as Becharof Lake, and probably in the Semidis. 

 It may be assumed that nivalis intergrades with toivnsendi some- 

 where on Alaska Peninsula. 



Plectrophenax nivalis townsendi 



Attu: K6-ka-noch 



Atka: Math'-a-wach 



Unalaska: Masnikh (Wetmore) 



.Russian, Commander Islands :Sniegirok, plu. Snegirki (Stejneger) 



Russian: Snegir (Zitkow, Birula) or Seryi Snegir (Tolstow) 



Chukchi: Ptochekadlin (Palmen) 



This snow bunting nests throughout the Aleutian Islands, pre- 

 ferring the high, rocky terrain. We considered it likely that snow 

 buntings inhabited most of these islands. 



Turner (1886) observed snow buntings at Belkofski in July 

 1881, and Gianini (1917) found snow buntings in the mountains 

 at Stepovak Bay. In 1911, Wetmore found the birds to be com- 

 mon in the mountains near Morzhovoi Bay. Without question, 

 snow buntings nest in the high country throughout Alaska Penin- 

 sula. Somewhere along this Aleutian Range, probably well to the 

 east, townsendi must intergrade with nivalis. Of course, town- 

 sendi is known to nest also on Nunivak, the Pribilofs, the 

 Shumagins, the Commanders, and the Bering Sea coast of Siberia. 



In 1925, I observed snow buntings at King Cove on April 25, 

 and on April 26 and 27 I saw more of these birds at False Pass. 

 Subspecific identification was not made in these instances, but, 

 later, the birds were found on the nesting grounds and were 

 identified as townsendi. On May 4, a male was heard singing 

 among the lava beds near Urilia Bay, Unimak Island, where 

 they were common. Soon, their songs were ringing everywhere 

 in the rugged lava. Later, they were found among the high rocks 

 at False Pass ; at the head of the valley near Aghileen Pinnacles ; 

 on the rocky slopes of Frosty Peak ; on Amak Island ; and on 

 Ikatan Peninsula. Immature birds were flying about on Amak 

 Island on July 11. On August 10, at Ikatan, a family of young 

 birds on the beach was observed learning to fly. 



In 1941, Beals and Longworth found snow buntings on Unimak 

 Island all winter. 



