ALASKA LONGSPUR 1627 



Winter. — While much of the available literature on wintering 

 Lapland longspurs cannot be referred to a specific subspecies, it is 

 well known that eastern and western forms overlap broadly in the 

 mid-western prairies where they occur in great numbers. Nearly 

 every author mentions the great abundance of these birds in winter. 

 A. L. Goodrich, Jr. (1945) remarks that in Kansas "They frequent 

 the wind-swept plains and prairies, occurring in large flocks. Skim- 

 ming or running over the ground, they range widely in search of seeds 

 and berries of available grasses, weeds and low plants." W. W. 

 Cooke (1897) states that in Colorado "When it first arrives it passes 

 up into the lower mountain parks, but in severe weather it is confined 

 to the plains extending to southern Colorado." The species ap- 

 parently moves rather extensively hi winter, opportunistically seeking 

 localities where the food supply can sustain the very large numbers 

 present. This seems especially true in the northern perimeter of the 

 winter range (latitude 50° N.) where they may occur in abundance in 

 some years and only uncommonly in others. 



Distribution 



Range. — Alaska, northern Yukon, and northwestern Mackenzie 

 south to Oregon, Nevada, Utah, Arizona, New Mexico, and northern 

 Texas. 



Breeding range.— -The Alaska lapland longspur breeds from south- 

 western, western, and northern Alaska (Aleutian, Shumagin, Pribilof, 

 Nunivak, and St. Lawrence islands; St. Michael, Cape Lisburne, 

 Barrow) to northern Yukon (Herschel Island) and northwestern 

 Mackenzie (Mackenzie Delta, Rendezvous Lake) ; recorded in summer 

 farther south in Alaska (Semidi Islands, Fort Kenai) and in Mackenzie 

 (Fort Franklin). 



Winter range.- — Winters from southern British Columbia (Lulu 

 Island, Okanagan Landing), northwestern and central Montana 

 (Fortine; Custer County), southwestern South Dakota (Rapid City), 

 central northern Nebraska (Wood Lake), and northeastern Kansas 

 (Hamilton and Douglas counties) south to California (rarely, Litch- 

 field, Death Valley), central Utah (Tooele; Duchesne County), 

 Arizona (rarely, Imperial Dam, Meteor Crater), east-central New 

 Mexico (Picacho), and northern Texas (Canyon); casually west to 

 western California (Eureka, False Bay) and east to Tennessee (Mem- 

 phis) and Ohio (Columbus). 



Egg dates. — Alaska: 159 records, May 23 to August 1; 90 records. 

 June 5 to June 22; 112 records May 25 to July 7. 



Mackenzie: 12 records, June 14 to July 1. 



