CATALOGUE OF CANADIAN BIRDS. 211 



CXXI. PODASOCYS Coues 1886. 



281. Mountain Plover. 



Podasocys montanus (Towns.) Coues 1866. 



Chiefly the plains, from central Kansas to the Rocky mountains, 

 north to the British Boundary, breeding from Kansas northward. 

 {A. O. U. List.) Dr. Elhott Coues found this species at the mouth 

 of Frenchman river and westward to near the Sweet Grass hills in 

 July, 1874, and there is a specimen in the British Museum labelled 

 "North American Boundary Commission, 49th parallel, June 24th, 

 1874, No. 91. G. Dawson." In June, 1895, the writer was on 

 Frenchman river, Sask., for many miles and did not see a trace of 

 the bird so that lat. 49° must be close to its northern limit. 



Family XXIII. APHRIZID^. Surf-Birds and Turnstones. 

 CXXII. APHRIZA Audubon. 1839. 



282. Surf Bird. 



Aphriza virgata (Gmel.) Gray. 1847. 



Four specimens of this bird were taken in the vicinity of Sitka 

 by Bischoff. It is a wide-spread Pacific species, occurring only as 

 a rare summer or fall visitant on the shores of the North Pacific 

 and Bering sea, reaching the vicinity of Bering straits in Norton 

 sound. A pair was seen one autumn at St. Michael and a few 

 others at various times. (Nelson.) Sixteen taken from a flock on 

 a rocky islet, Sitka, Alaska, July 21st, 1896. These were all appar- 

 ently immature birds, that is, non-breeding birds of the second 

 year. (Grinnell.) Not uncommon along the whole coast of British 

 Columbia. It has been taken in Howe sound by Mr. R.V. Griffin ; 

 at Port Simpson by Mr. W. B. Anderson; and at Nanaimo and Fort 

 Rupert by Lord. It was also found very abundant on Stubbs 

 island on the west coast of Vancouver island, in August, 1893, by 

 Mr. W, Spreadborough ; it very likely breeds there. In August, 

 1904, Mr. Spreadborough saw two large flocks of what he took to be 

 the surf bird on the west coast of James bay, Hudson bay. He 

 took no specimens but writes that the birds seen were in appear- 



