the Birds of the Lower Petchora. 435 



after minute, was gaining volume and strength, soon to burst 

 up the solid roof of ice over which we were passing. Our 

 horses advanced slowly with ears pricked up and heads low, 

 and sometimes positively refused to advance at all until the 

 " yemstchik " went before them to test the strength of the 

 ice. We arrived at 3 a.m. on the morning of the 19th May 

 at the log-hut on the bank of the Zylma, whither MM. 

 Znaminsky and Sacharoff had preceded us. Ducks were in 

 countless thousands resting on the larger pools of water on 

 the ice, and flying in all directions around. The meadows in 

 the \deinity are favourite haunts at feeding- time of both Geese 

 and Ducks ; and we had come over to get some flight-shooting 

 at these great bands of migratory wildfowl. About 9.30 a.m. 

 on the 20th INIay the Zylma ice was on the move, and the 

 water, rising rapidly, being dammed back by the accumu- 

 lation of ice at its mouth, began to flood the meadows and 

 rush back through the " kourias,^^ converting, in the short 

 space of six or seven hours, the whole country on the south 

 bank of the Zylma into a vast lake. We had had our shoot- 

 ing; and it was not without some little trouble that we 

 managed to return to Ust Zylma, with the aid. of a boat 

 brought by our men across the centre ice and across the lanes 

 of water formed along both shores of the Petchora. The 

 Ducks disappeared as if by magic, dispersing over the country 

 or migrating again en masse further to the north. On the 

 21st the Petchora ice broke up; and ten days later the river 

 was clear of ice, and a vast tract of the country on the western 

 or left bank was flooded by the rapidly rising waters. On 

 the 10th June we commenced our journey down the river, 

 having seen comparatively little of the wildfowl on migra- 

 tion, with the exception of that one night's flight-shooting, 

 which, however, is something to be remembered. What we 

 did see of the different species will be found mentioned each 

 under its own heading. 



We may here mention that during our trip we pro- 

 cured the eggs and doAVU often species of Ducks; and upon 

 carefully examining the different kinds we were able to 



SER. III. VOL. VI. 2 H 



