species have tlius far been found in the state 

 during the winter months. But not all of the lat- 

 ter could be found in any one locality, nor is it 

 at all probable that all would ever occur within 

 the limits of the state in any one year. There- 

 fore, in order to make the winter acquaintance 

 of the full list it would be necessary to cover the 

 whole state over a series of years, varying in cli- 

 matic and food conditions. The abundance or 

 scarcity of food, and the rigor of the cold season 

 in other regions, particularly to the northward, 

 have much to do with determining the presence 

 or absence and the numbers of some of our 

 winter visitants. 



It will perhaps be helpful to present the list 

 under the following four sub-headings, as in this 

 way may be shown at a glance the manner of 

 occurrence of those assembled in each group. 



1. Permanent Residents — 32 species, 3 sub-spe- 

 cies. 



2. Winter Visitants — 16 species, 1 sub-species. 



3. "Half Hardy" — 10 species, 1 sub-species. 



4. Accidental — 27 species. , 



Of these groups the first two, numbering to- 

 gether 48 species and 4 sub-species, constitute the 

 real wititer bird-life. The others are of irregular 

 and uncertain occurrence, their presence depend- 

 ing upon mild seasons or more or less accidental 

 conditions. Of the 48 species and 4 sub-species 

 making up the real winter bird-life of the state, 

 not more than about 30 would be likely to be 

 found in any one locality, and of these, several 

 would be of such rare and irregular occurrence 

 that two dozen species at most would comprise 

 the list that could be confidently looked for by 

 any local observer. 



PERMANENT RESIDENTS. 



The birds included in this group are those that 

 are with us all the year round. It is still a moot- 

 ed question whether or not the individuals breed- 

 ing in a locality are the same as those occurring 

 in winter; for example, whether or not the winter 

 Blue Jays are the identical birds that make their 

 summer home in that particular place. There 

 may be a to and fro movement even among these 

 so-called permanent birds, and while the species 

 is represented throughout the year the individu- 

 als may change. The interesting work in banding 

 birds that is going on at present will probably 

 throw some light on this question, as it promises 

 to do on many other unsolved problems in regard 

 to the movements of birds. 



1. HERRING GULL (Larus argentatus). 



This, the largest of our gulls, may be seen in 

 considerable numbers along the Lake Superior 



shore from Duluth to Pigeon River throughout 

 the winter, when the lake does not freeze. 



Several other large gulls, northern breeding 

 species, may occur on Lake Superior in the win- 

 ter time, but thus far there are no definite rec- 

 ords. 



2. AMERICAN MERGANSER: GOOSAND- 

 ER: SHELLDRAKE (Mergus americanus). A 



few individuals winter on Lake Superior and in 

 open places in the Mississippi and other rivers. 



3. RED-BREASTED MERGANSER: 

 SHELLDRAKE (Mergus serrator). Rather 

 more frequent than the last under similar condi- 

 tions. Smaller than that species, 22 inches in- 

 stead of 25, with the breast, instead of white, 

 brownish marked with black. 



4. GOLDEN-EYE: WHISTLE-WING (Clan- 

 gula clangula americana). A beautiful black and 

 white duck occurring in small flocks on Lake 

 Superior and open places in rivers, no matter 

 how cold the weather. Many years ago, before 

 the building of the apron and before the noise 

 and activity became so great about the Falls of 

 St. Anthony, a flock of these ducks used to spend 

 the winter in the pool below the cataract. 



A very similar duck, called Barrow's Golden- 

 Eye, may be a winter visitant in our state, but 

 thus far no specimens have been secured. The 

 white patch on the side of the head of the adult 

 male is crescentic-shaped instead of oval as in 

 the common Golden-Eye. The females and im- 

 mature birds are difficult to distinguish. 



*5. BOB-WHITE: QUAIL (Colinus virgin- 

 ianus virginianus). The cheerful whistle of the 

 Bob-White is a much more frequent sound in 

 southeastern Minnesota than it was forty odd 

 years ago when the writer first began taking note 

 of such things. It is now a well known and often 

 locally common bird and has extended its range 

 in the eastern part of the state as far north as 

 Lake Mille Lacs, westward to the Dakota line, 

 and northwestward to at least Marshall county 

 (E. L. Brown, 1903) near the northwestern angle 

 of the state. Severe winters are hard upon them 

 and their numbers fluctuate from year to year, 

 largely due to the conditions of the cold season. 

 Much can be done to preserve this bird by winter 

 feeding and suitable protective measures. 



It may be a surprise to many to hear that the 

 Bob-White, usually regarded primarily as a 

 game bird, is from its food habits one of the most 

 valuable of all our birds to the agriculturist and 

 horticulturist, and therefore to mankind gener- 

 ally. Dr. Hornaday in a well placed burst of 

 enthusiasm says that "we now know that for the 

 smaller pests of the farm the Bob-White is the 



