jgg A. L. V. Manniche. 



As well in 1907 as in 1908 the first Snow-Bunting appeared at 

 the ship's-harbour April 5"\ In 1908 Mr. Freuchen observed the 

 first Snow-Bunting the very same date at the house of the observation 

 station in Pustervig. The migration of the Snow-Buntings lasted 

 however through the whole month. The males arrived first. Low 

 temperature [-f- 30° and still lower] and frequent snow-storms often 

 made it difficult for the hardy small birds to support life. 



In very severe weather the Snow-Bunting would often fly to the 

 winter house at the ship's-harbour or to the ship. They ate with 

 great greediness crumbs of bread, grains of barley, rice etc., thrown 

 out for them. 



In fine weather the flocks would fly around on lower lying 

 snowless spots generally near the shore; they spent the nights up 

 country and took their rest on steep rocky walls inaccessible to 

 Polar Fox and Ermine. 



I often observed, that Snow-Bunlings at evening would crouch 

 together in cracks and other natural hollows in rocky walls to find 

 shelter in this way from the cold of the night. 



Already in the first days of May I saw a few — certainly very 

 old — males in full summer plumage accompanied by their mates. 

 In fine weather the couples stayed by the nesting-places and the 

 males were singing at the top of their voice. In snow-storms and 

 bad weather they would again join the flocks wandering around; in 

 these were still many males, which were far from being in full 

 plumage. 



The flocks were certainly considerably diminished at the end 

 of May, and Snow-Buntings in couples could be seen everywhere : it 

 took, however, some two weeks before the shedding of the feather 

 tips of the younger birds was finished and the pairing of all birds 

 took place. 



The nesting-places are rather varied, but by far the majority 

 of the nests are placed in heaps of stones lying isolated and sur- 

 rounded by relatively fertile plains or meadows; such places are 

 undoubtedly chosen on account of their rich insect life. However 

 I also found some nests in cracks in the rocks, beneath stones lying 

 on the ground, and on similar spots. 



The birds make a relatively large cup -shaped hollow in 

 the surface of the ground or in the sand blown into the cracks; in 

 this hollow they will later on build the real nest and in such a 

 way, that the edge of the nest, which consists of moss and stiff 

 straws, is level with the surface. In the nests I saw, the materials 

 used as lining consisted of hair (Fox or Musk-Ox) and feathers 

 (Ptarmigan, Skua and in a few cases Snowy Owl). 



