CACKLING GOOSE. 



A MONG the Geese that frequent the Territory of 

 Alaska during summer this species is the most 

 abundant, breeding in great numbers from Point Barrow 

 on the Arctic Ocean all along the coast to the mouth of 

 the Yukon, and up the rivers into the interior; and also 

 in the Aleutian Islands as far to the eastward, accord- 

 ing to Turner, as Unalaska Island, beyond which it does 

 not go. In winter it comes south to California, where 

 it is abundant, and sometimes reaches the Mississippi 

 Valley, having been taken as far to the eastward as 

 Wisconsin. 



It commences to appear in its northern breeding 

 grounds toward the latter part of April, and the birds 

 have usually all arrived by the middle of May. It is a 

 great event not only for the Geese themselves, but also 

 for the natives of the region, who have been living for 

 many weary months on a diet of fish, and who welcome 

 the opportunity to vary their monotonous bill of fare with 

 the more generous article of flesh. Many birds are 

 mated, Nelson says, when they arrive, but the males 

 who have not yet succeeded in obtaining wives fight hard 

 for the possession of the females. Nelson's description 

 of these encounters is somewhat as follows. The females, 

 keeping by themselves on the muddy banks of the river, 

 a favorite resort, doze away the hours, or dabble in the 

 mud. The males scatter about and are very uneasy, 

 moving incessantly from place to place, and uttering loud 

 cries. Occasionally two of these belligerently inclined 



