BIRDS OF ESSEX COUNTY. 



I49 



loaded gun inside his door. As soon as the honking of a flock of Geese was 

 heard, all would rush out and discharge their pieces at the birds who generally 

 swept on undisturbed. Mr. Dodge tells me that flocks of Wild Geese not 

 infrequently alight in the Topsfield meadows in the spring, and if undisturbed 

 they stay several days, leaving the grass trampled down and numerous feathers 

 as mementos. I have seen a few on the beach at Ipswich and have crept up 

 within gunshot, and watched the beautiful birds. On starting three birds there 

 in March, they rose lazily, honking loudly and flew to the ocean where they 

 alighted on the water close to the surf line. One, in fact, was caught by a wave 

 and tossed back, so that he had to rise on the wing and fly out again. The 

 heaviest flight in the fall is generally during the last week of November. 



Dr. Phillips states that it is only in or after stormy weather that Wild 

 Geese fly in to Wenham Lake and alight. At other times they fly more to the 

 eastward. They occasionally spend the night resting on the lake. In 1900, 

 between September 28th and December 2d, 144 Geese were seen flying over the 

 lake in seven flocks, while three flocks with a total of 85 birds alighted on the 

 lake. In 1901, between October 20th and November 26th, 247 birds in nine 

 flocks flew over, and 115 birds in seven flocks alighted; 47 Geese were shot. 

 In 1902, one flock of 200 birds flew over, but owing to the mildness of the 

 weather the flight was generally to the eastward. Geese were seen from 

 November 14th to December. In 1903, there was an early flight from Novem- 

 ber 5th to 8th, and a heavy late one from November 27th to December 3d. In 

 1904, the flight at Wenham Lake was small ; 22 birds were shot. Dr. Phillips 

 keeps a large flock of Canada Geese decoys at the lake as does also Mr. A. B. 

 Clark at his pond at Great Neck, Ipswich. They are also kept at Chebacco and 

 other ponds. Dr. Phillips reports that a Wild Goose, in the spring of 1900, 

 entered one of his pens of goose decoys and was taken alive, and I find a similar 

 event reported at Chebacco Lake. 



[172a] Branta canadensis hutchinsii (Rich.). Hutchins's Goose; Lesser Canada 

 Goose. Putnam ' records this as common in April and October. This subspecies is more 

 common in the interior and on the Pacific coast of the United States and although it may have 

 been formerly of irregular or even common occurrence, there are no specimens to confirm this, 

 and it is only by careful study of specimens that it can be distinguished from the very similar 

 but slightly larger canadensis. It is therefore entered among the doubtful species. 



1 F. W. Putnam : Proc. Essex Inst., vol. 1, p. 219, 1856. 



