No. 5. — Notes on Birds from East Siberia and Arctic Alaska. 



By W. Sprague Brooks. 



Introduction. 



In the spring of 1913, several graduates of Harvard University 

 organized a hunting expedition in northern waters. Through the 

 generous cooperation of Col. John E. Thayer and Prof. Theodore 

 Lyman, Mr. Joseph Dixon and the writer had the pleasure of accom- 

 panying the expedition as zoological collectors. Our itinerary was 

 as follows. 



Leaving Seattle on the power schooner Polar Bear, Capt. L. L. 

 Lane in command, we proceeded up the "inside" passage of south- 

 eastern Alaska, stopping for a few hours at Woewodsky and Kupreanof 

 Islands on April 9 and 10, and at two points on Icy Straits April 11 

 and 12. Thence to the Semidi Islands on April 18 and 19, and from 

 there to several points along the Alaskan peninsula where little time 

 for work was at our disposal. 



Obtaining a few supplies at Unalaska we proceeded to Copper 

 Island arriving on May 6. Here the snow was too deep for travelling 

 and in two days we left for Bering Island where winter conditions also 

 caused much trouble. 



May 10 found us at Petropavlovsk and from this date to May 27 

 we worked on the Kamchatkan coast from Petropavlovsk to Cape 

 Africa. At the latter point ice conditions prevented further travel 

 in a northerly direction and we crossed Bering Sea to St. Lawrence 

 Island. This Island and the Chukchi Peninsula of Siberia were the 

 centre of our activities during June, including a brief stop at Big 

 Diomede Island in Bering Strait. 



In July our work on the Siberian shore was extended to Cape 

 Serdze from which point we crossed to Cape Lisburne, Alaska, and 

 Point Barrow arriving at the latter Point on July 24. The favorable 

 ice conditions east of Point Barrow soon ceased and we encountered 

 every possible unfavorable condition of ice and weather during August, 

 finally being forced to go into winter quarters at Humphrey Point, 

 Alaska, after nearly losing the vessel. Humphrey Point lies about 

 thirty-five miles west of the Alaskan-Canadian boundary. Though 



