Dr. O. Finscli's Ornithological Letters. 59 



mon of its kind ; and at the bifurcation of the river (20th 

 July) Count Zeil shot a male Terekia cinerea. Anthus cer- 

 vinus, in habits partaking both of A. pratensis and ^. ar- 

 boreus, was plentiful, as was also Lusciola suecica. Geese 

 [Aiiser cinereus) were not rare, nor were Swans (probably 

 Cygnus musicus) ; but we succeeded in getting only young in 

 down, as well as young of Harelda glacialis, CEdemia nigra, 

 and CE. fusca. Colymbus septentrionalis was very common, 

 but, as usual, very shy. We went up the river about 130 

 versts, where we found an Ostiak, with his family, who had 

 lived here for about four years, engaged in fishery, as a small 

 species of Corrgonus (probably allied to C. albida), called "her- 

 ring,"^ is very plentiful. We had the good luck to engage this 

 Ostiak as a pilot for the Podarata river, said to be about five 

 days^ journey on foot. We went further up the Schtschu- 

 tschja river about thirty or forty versts, when navigation, 

 except for small canoes, became impossible. On the 29th of 

 July we had to leave the lotka, and went, a party of eleven 

 men, furnished with provisions for nine days, to the Podarata 

 river, where we expected to find reindeer ; so we were told. 



In the upper part of the river we observed Tringa mhiuta, 

 which lives in the thick willow-brush and has a peculiar cry, 

 Saxicola oenanthe, MotaciUa alba, Lusciola suecica, Chara- 

 drius hiatictda, and, for the first time, C. auratus. Once we 

 found the nest of Tringa minuta with four eggs, which hatched 

 in a box with cotton, into which I had put them. Larus ma- 

 rinus and Sterna hirundo were common ; of the latter we got 

 young in down. Phylloscopus trochilus and P. tristis were 

 observed as far as the wood-region extended, i. e. along the 

 whole of the river. Plectrophmies lapponica and P. nivalis 

 we found likewise on the upper course of the river. Of rapa- 

 cious birds we observed the Osprey, Falco subbuteo, F. cesalon, 

 F. peregrinus, and Buteo lagopus, all of them being rare. We 

 left our lotka on the 31st of July, and sent it with two men 

 back to a place called Tschornejar (high black bank), as the 

 water was rapidly falling, and it would have been impos- 

 sible to take the lotka back later in the season. We proceded 

 on foot, carrying our ammunition and provisions, and reached 



