Mr. H. Seebohm on the Ornithology of Siberia. 340 
polaris in his ‘Sibirische Reise,’ uu. p. 146. This bird was 
described from a female, obtained by Middendorff about three 
hundred miles to the north-east of the locality where I pro- 
cured my bird. He represents it as differing from the female 
of E. scheniclus in almost precisely the same characters which 
I have pointed out above as distinguishing the two males. 
. 
EEMBERIZA AUREOLA, Pall. 
I shot this very handsome and conspicuous bird for the 
first time on the Arctic circle on the 9th of June, but only 
occasionally saw it afterwards. This must be nearly its 
northern limit. On the return journey I shot it again at 
-Yen-e-saisk’, in lat. 58°, in the middle of August, with scarcely 
fledged young. There are skins of this bird in the St.-Peters- 
burg Museum, collected by Baron Maydell in the Tschuski 
Land. 
EMBERIZA LEUCOCEPHALA, Gmel. 
I shot one solitary bird of the Pine-Bunting on the Arctic 
circle on the 13th of June, but did not meet with it again. 
EMBERIZA RUSTICA, Pall. 
I did not meet with this bird until I reached lat. 62°, on 
my return journey. 
PLECTROPHANES NIVALIS (Linn.). 
In crossing the great steppes of South-western Siberia, 
between Tyu-main’ and Tomsk, we frequently came upon 
small flocks of Snow-Buntings. These birds seem to have no 
settled winter home; but during the cold weather they appa- 
rently live a roving gipsy life, wandering about in flocks, 
perpetually migrating northwards as fast as the frost and 
snow will let them, but continually forced to beat a retreat 
with every return of wintry weather. As we passed through 
Yen-e-saisk’ early in April, we were told that the Snow- 
Buntings had arrived just before us. When we reached the 
winter-quarters of the ‘Thames,’ on the 23rd of April, the 
sailors informed us that the Snow-Buntings had preceded us 
by afew days. Small flocks were constantly seen until the 7th 
of June. We saw no more of them until we reached Gol- 
cheek’-a, where we were in their breeding-grounds. 
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