LIFE HISTORIES OF NORTH AMERICAN WILD FOWL 229 



came with her head down in the usual manner of an irate goose. She followed 

 us for some distance when we left." 



Plumages. — Doctor Grinnell hiis kindly loaned me two specimens 

 of the downy yonng of this subspecies. These and a specimen of 

 downy yonng cackling goose in the United States National Museum 

 resemble each other very closely, but are quite unlike the downy 

 young of the Canada goose. The young of the eastern birds when 

 first hatched are bright greenish olive above and bright yellow below, 

 M'ith no dark markings on the sides of the head. On the other hand, 

 the young of the two western forms, at the same age, are much browner 

 above and much duller and more bufi'y below, with more or less dis- 

 tinct head markings. The central crown patch and the upper parts of 

 the body are lustrous "brownish olive," darkest on the head and 

 rump ; the lores are washed or striped with the same dark color, 

 which surrounds the eye and extends in a postocular stripe down the 

 neck; the under parts, including the forehead and the sides of the 

 head and the neck, are dull yellowish or " colonial buff,"washed on 

 the sides of the head and neck with "honey yellow" or "yellow 

 ocher," paling on the belly and flanks to " ivory yellow " and deepen- 

 ing on the breast to " deep colonial buff." 



Judging from what little material there is available for study, 

 I should say that the molts and plumages are similar to those of the 

 Canada goose. 



Behavioi\ — Very little has been published about the habits of 

 this goose and practically nothing about its food. Doctor Grinnell 

 (1909) gives the following general account of it, taken from a\Ir. 

 Littlejohn's notes: 



When Mole Harbor, Admiralty Island, was readied, on April 10, large 

 flocks were seen about the creek mouth at the head of the bay. On the 18th 

 many were found at Windfall Harbor, and by the 27th nearly all had paired 

 and could be seen passing back and forth to the inland waters every day, 

 remaining a good share of the time in the open water, where tlieir loud 

 notes could be heard at all times, but when night came on I thnik most, if 

 not all, came to land to roost. They seemed to feed about tlie shores, 

 especially where small streams and springs were flowing across the gravel. 

 One large creek near our camp was a favorite place to assemble, and each 

 evening they could be seen coming in from all directions to pass the night. 

 At low tide they would remain on the gravel flats at the creek moutli. but 

 when the tide came in they would retreat to the acres of ice inland, wliicli 

 had been formed during the winter; here they remained until morning if not 

 disturbed, and then would break up in pairs, as a rule, and go off again for the 

 day. Several pairs had chosen the lakes back of Mole Havbor for a nesting 

 ground and were seen together when we first went there ; but a few days 

 later some old gander was apt to be seen in a secluded cove, or as happened 

 several times, fluslied from the thick timlier at .some distance from the water. 

 At such times he would fly about, scolding away at a great rate, as If he 



