454 GEOLOGICAL SURVEY OF CANADA. 
toria and Port Simpson. (/amnnin.) Common in the fall; rare in 
the spring at Chilliwack B.C. (Bvooks.) Like the snowflake this 
species has acircumpolar distribution and is recorded from nearly 
every point visited by explorers.along the shores of the Arctic sea 
coast. (Velson.) This species arrives at St. Michael from the 5th to 
the 15th May. A few arrive at first, and before a month elapses it is 
the most abundant land bird seen in the locality. (Zurner.) Quite 
common at Point Barrow, but breeding inland on drier places than 
the snowflake which prefers the sea shore and thelagoons. (AZw- 
doch.) IUsawasmall flock at the Aphoon mouth of the Yukon 
onthe 27th August, 1899; later they were seen at St. Michael and 
onUnalaska Island. (Szshop.) 
BREEDING NotTes.—My acquaintance with the birds at this 
point was limited to the few hours ashore during this evening and 
the next. But the Alaskan longspur was, with the single exception 
of the snowy owl, the only land bird observed. The low-lying 
moss-covered tundras with not even a dwarfed bush or any-.exten- 
sive patch of grass to offer attraction to any other land _ bird, 
seemed to constitute a congenial abode for this species, and the 
longspurs were fairly common. They seemed toshow preference 
for the driest tracts lying just back of the beach and on the higher 
ground separating the numerous lagoons and lakes. In my tramp 
across these tundras I would frequently meet with a male long- 
spur standing motionless on some conspicuous hummock. If I 
approached too close he would attempt to get out of my way by 
stealthily running to one side, but if pressed he would take flight 
and mount upwards circling high overhead and uttering his pleas- 
ing song. I sometimes heard them singing from their perches 
on the ground, but they were most generally heard while circling 
with apparent aimlessness far above, the yellow reflection of the 
midnight sun bringing out their forms against the indigo sky. To 
my ear the song of the Alaskan longspur resembles closely that 
of the western meadowlark, except that it is much weaker and 
more prolonged. A nest was found at this point containing two 
newly-hatched young and three eggs. It was sunk into a hum- 
mock of spahgnum and completely concealed from above by a 
tussock of grass, part of which was artfully arched over it. The 
nest proper consisted of a remarkably scant lining of long, fine 
grasses. At Cape Lowenstern, on July Ist, I noted a few long- 
spurs, and at Cape Blossom, over the rolling hills just back of the 
