320 BRITISH BIRDS. [vol. vi. 



together with the down, from the regions of the belly. There are 

 other points which should bo taken into consideration and iiivastigated : 

 e.g. does the male goose contribute any down or feathers to the nest ? 

 does he take any active part in the duties of incubation ? and are 

 there any known differences, however slight, between the plumagas 

 of male and female " Grey Geese " ? If there are any sexual dif- 

 ferences in the feathers I should like to know them, for at present 

 I am inclined to think that there are none. F. W. Smalley. 



Sirs, — ^The question of the breeding species of Geese in Iceland 

 has never been definitely settled, but in my opinion the Grey Lag, 

 Pink-footed and White-fronted all nest there. A breeding-place of 

 the White-fronted Goose (Anser albifrons) was discovered in June, 

 1911, almost in the middle of the comitry, and eggs were obtained 

 from this locality again in 1912. Diu-ing the past 15 years I have 

 received from Iceland a number of sets of eggs of A. brachyrhynchus, 

 and aLso obtained about three sets of .4. albifrons about six years 

 ago. R. Plxjmb. 



[Although the term " flank-feathers " has been very generally 

 applied to the small feathers found among the down, there seems to 

 be no justification for its use, and feathers taken from nests of geese 

 appear, as Mr. Smalley rightly says, to be plucked from the belly. 

 Once or twice I have found a genuine flank-feather present, but this 

 is probably merely accidental. Mr. H. F. Witherby informs me that 

 he has never seen a flank-feather in a duck's nest. 



The only nests of A. brachyrhynchus which I have been able to 

 examine closely were all obtained on Spitsbergen, and were undoubtedly 

 authentic, as no other Grey Goose breeds on that group. Probably 

 a few also nest in North Iceland, but I have not been able to examine 

 any nests from this locality critically. The few authentic eggs and 

 nests of A. fabalis which I have seen were obtained in North Russia 

 and the interior of North Scandinavia. Many nests of so-called 

 " Bean Goose " from Iceland and the coasts of Norway and the Gulf 

 of Bothnia (visually if not unauthenticated in any way) have proved 

 to belong to Anser anser. The most useful distinction between the 

 nests of the two birds lies in the eggs, but the feathers of .4. /a6a/is (and 

 probably the down also) are appreciably darker, and A. brachyrhynchus 

 makes a much more substantial nest than its ally- 

 In practical work these distinctions are not of much use, for the 

 simple reason that the locality alone is enough to separate them. The 

 two birds not only do not breed in the same districts, but do not nest 

 within six hundred miles of one another. 



In Iceland on the other hand it is necessary to be able to distinguish 

 the nests of A. anser, albifrons and brachyrhynchus, and in North 

 Russia and Scandinavia we have .4. anser, albifrons, fabalis, and 

 ftnmarchicus breeding. Mr. Smalley speaks of the down of A. fabalis 

 as being " light, like that of A. anser.'" As he includes feathers in 

 his use of the word " down," and the nest-feathoi-s of A. fabalis differ 

 w^idely from those of A. anser, it would be interesting to know the 

 locality of the nest to which Mr. Smalley refers, and whether it is 

 authenticated in any way. I am not aware of any evidence that the 

 male goose .shares in incubation, but with regard to the other points, 

 definite information would be very acceptable. F. C. R. Jourdain.] 



