282 BULLETIN 130, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM 



ponds and streams, almost helpless. Generally a single one was seen in some 

 mill pond or creek, and the fowling piece, loaded with large shot, and not 

 infrequently the rifle, was used to bring to bag the noble game, though, con- 

 sidering the plight they were in, in all probability anyone might have paddled 

 up to the birds and taken them alive. In fact, in a number of instances they 

 were reported as thus taken alive. Large flocks were seen in some districts in 

 the same pitiable condition. A flock of from 33 to 35 American or whistling 

 swans surprised the inhabitants of Plumer on Saturday forenoon by alighting 

 in the waters of Cherry Run. One of the swans was almost immediately shot 

 at and killed, and, to the surprise of the now large crowd of men and boys, the 

 remainder of the flock, on account of the ice accumulating on their wings, vv'as 

 unable to fly, and a general rush was then made for the poor birds, and 25 were 

 captured alive by the eager fellows. 



The late E. S. Cameron has sent me some very full notes on the 

 whistling swan, which seems to be a regular spring and fall migrant 

 through central Montana. He mentions a flock of 344 birds seen by 

 W. R. Felton on Mallard Lake on April 4, 1912, and a still larger 

 flock of about a thousand birds seen by J. H. Holtman on INIarshy 

 Lake on April 10, 1911. He says : 



The swans come in small flocks, at short intervals, until they sometimes 

 aggregate several hundred individuals. "While the swans are usually the 

 earliest birds to arrive, geese may be still earlier, and this year a small flock of 

 six Canada geese {Branta canadensis canadensis) preceded the swans. In 1913 

 the first swans were observed on April 4 by Bob Morrow (one of Mr. Williams's 

 men), who counted 2G. On April 6 W. P. Sullivan, of the Square Butte Ranch, 

 enumerated 25 in one flock and saw another smaller bunch of about half that 

 number, which were too far away to count without glasses. At the present time 

 (April 8), when we reached the lake side there were 125 swans, as we ascer- 

 tained after frequent counts. These were grouped upon the southwest shore of 

 the lake immediately below the ranch where the fine mountain stream called 

 Alder Creek flows in. Some were standing upon one leg in 2 or 3 inches of 

 water, others floated asleep behind these, with their heads under their wings, 

 and farther away watchful birds, constituting a rear guard, were sailing about. 

 With very few exceptions the swans held one leg along the side either when 

 swimming or resting upon the water. They allowed us to examine them 

 through binoculars for a few minutes and then all began swimming slowly for 

 the center of the lake. Mr. Williams informed us that no matter how much the 

 swans might be disturbed they would always return to this place, on account of 

 the fresh water running in from the mountains. He also said that unless shot 

 at (when they would probably leave altogether) the swans might possiblv 

 remain until May 1. 



Doctor Nelson (1887) writes: 



This fine bird arrives on the shore of Bering Sea in the vicinity of St. Michael 

 early in May, and in some seasons by the 27th of April, as in 187S, when sev- 

 eral were seen on that date about a spring hole in the ice. At this time the 

 ground was clothed with over a foot of snow, and the sea covered, as far as 

 could be seen, with unbroken ice. During the next few days a terrible storm 

 of wind and snow swept over the country, but did these birds no harm, as 

 was seen directly after the storm ceased by their presence at the water hole 

 as usual. Mr. Dall records their arrival on the Yukon about May 1, and notes 



