THE IVIUSEUM. 



Vol. I. 



A Monthly Magazine Devoted to Research in Natural Science. 

 ALBION, N. Y., FEBRUARY 15, 1895. 



No. 4 



ARCTIC NOTES. 



On the Habits of certain Rare 

 Northern Birds in Comman- 

 der Islands and Kamtska- 

 tka, by Leonard 

 Stejneger. 



Taken from his excellent report to tlie U. S. Nal lonal 

 Museum, continued from January number. 



Steller's Duck 



Eniconetta Stcllcri. 



This duck makes its appearance 

 about the first of November, at which 

 time large fiocks were observed, but 

 no specimen was secured before the 

 20th, although several were shot. 

 They remained all winter about the 

 coast, preferring the rockiest parts and 

 the places where the breakers were 

 most violent. Although very numer- 

 ous during the winter, in Spring their 

 number was enormously increased and 

 immense flocks covering many acres, 

 could be seen floating on the sea, a 

 quarter to a half mile oflf the shore, 

 in April. Towards the end of the 

 month they nearly all departed. It 

 doubtless does not breed on the islands, 

 although one o^gg was recorded in '72 

 by Prof. Dall. 



Pacific Eider. 



Soviatcra v-nigra. 



The Pacific Eider is now rather 

 scarce on the Islands. On Copper 

 Island there are at present only a few 

 places where it breeds, but I secured a 



a male in perfect plumage, a downy 

 chick and an o.g'g, the latter measuring 

 70 by 48 mm. 



Red-faced Cormorant. 



PJialacorcorax 11 rile. 



This species breeds on the islands 

 and eggs secured measure 61 by 40 mm, 

 63-5 by 39, and 66 by 37 mm. These 

 were taken from Copper Island. They 

 cannot be confounded with pclagicus, 

 as they are considerably larger, and 

 and the green color when looked at 

 through the shell, is totally different, 

 being much more bluish, against yellow- 

 ish m. pclagicus. 



Pelagic Cormorant. 



PJialacrocorax pclagicus. 



This species rears two broods in a 

 season. This is not to be regarded as 

 a positive statement that the same 

 parents rear two sets of young the 

 same year (although I believe that 

 most of them do) but simply that I 

 have found the colonies of this species 

 having eggs and downy young at two 

 different times. The first season com- 

 mences early in May, the young of 

 this brood being fully fledged in the 

 latter part of July. In the middle of 

 this month, however, the colonies 

 again contained all stages, from fresh 

 eggs to newly hatched young. During 

 the first days of August, I found downy 

 young of almost the same age and 

 still without feathers, while on the 



