to the east of that area some of the flocks take a more northwesterly 

 course, descending the Fort George River to reach the eastern shore 

 of James Bay about two-thirds of the distance north of its southern 

 extremity. Upon their arrival at either of these two points on James 

 Bay, the brant of this western segment turn northward and proceed 

 through the eastern part of Hudson Bay to their breeding grounds, 

 probably in western Baffin Island, Southampton Island, and other 

 islands in the Canadian Arctic. 



In general, the fall migration of the brant follows the routes utilized 

 in the spring. At this season, when gathering for the flight of 570 

 miles to the St. Lawrence River, they appear only on the western and 

 southern shores of Ungava Bay. Also, it appears that most of the birds 

 of the western segment, instead of following the eastern shores of 

 Hudson and James Bays, turn southwestward across the former, by 

 way of the Belcher Islands, to Cape Henrietta Maria and from there 

 south along the western shores of James Bay by way of Akimiski and 

 Charlton Islands. At the southern end of James Bay they are joined 

 by those that have taken the more direct route along the east coast* 

 of the bays and all then fly overland 570 miles to the estuary of the St. 

 Lawrence River. 



The Atlantic flyway receives accretions of waterfowl from three or 

 four interior migration paths, one of which is of first importance, as 

 it includes great flocks of canvasbacks, redheads, scaup ducks, Canada 

 geese, and many of the black ducks that winter in the waters and 

 marshes of the coastal region south of Delaware Bay. The canvas- 

 backs, redheads, and scaups come from their breeding grounds on the 

 great northern plains of central Canada, follow the general southeast- 

 erly trend of the Great Lakes, cross Pennsylvania over the mountains, 

 and reach the Atlantic coast in the vicinity of Delaware and Chesapeake 

 Bays. Black ducks, mallards, and blue-winged teals that have gath- 

 ered in southern Ontario during the fall leave these feeding grounds 

 and proceed southwest over a course that is apparently headed for the 

 Mississippi Valley. Many do continue this route down the Ohio 

 Valley, but others, upon reaching the vicinity of the St. Clair Flats, 

 between Michigan and Ontario, swing abruptly to the southeast and, 

 crossing the mountains in a single flight, reach the Atlantic coast south 

 of New Jersey. This route, with its Mississippi Valley branch, has 

 been fully demonstrated by the recovery records of ducks banded at 

 Lake Scugog, Ontario. 



58 



