%9o'"'] PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL MUSEUM. 473 



yards of them (Nash). Very abundant; breeding on Lake Winnepe- 

 gosis in J881 (Macoun). Shell River : 1885, first seen, four, on May 

 13; next seen, two, on May 14; a transient visitor only; not breeding, 

 (Calcutt). Qu'Appelle : Rather common summer resident ; April 25, 

 breeding north of the Touchwood Hills; nesting on the trees growing 

 on islands in the lakes (Guernsey). 



Fort Qu'Appelle, May 19, 1885. The Cormorant comes here in large flocks towards 

 the end of April ; it is called by half-breeds the Crow Duck; in its flight it flaps for 

 three or four strokes and then sails ; it is an expert diver. The half-breeds say that it 

 builds on islands in the lakes north of here, building its nests on trees. They say that 

 when a man lands on one of their breeding places the birds fly over him and drop 

 their excrement on him. I have been told this by several. They do not breed here 

 that I know of, but there are always several knocking about during the summer; 

 they sit on the bars with the pelicans. (Geo. F. Guernsey). 



18. Pelecanua erythrorhynchos. American White Pelican. 



Common summer resident about the large lakes; one taken at Pem- 

 bina in May ; observed at Mouse River on the boundary in September 

 (Cones). Winnipeg : Summer resident ; common about the large lakes ; 

 breeding at Shoal Lake (Hiue). Red River Valley : Summer resident ; 

 common; breeds at Shoal Lake (Hunter). Shoal Lake (Christy). Breeds 

 in the smaller lakes near Lake Winnipeg, and northwestward ; several 

 specimens shot in Lake Winnipeg in October, 1880 (Bell). Swamp 

 Island : 1885, first saw two on May 24 ; next seen May 31, after which it 

 was common; it breeds here ; in fall, last seen September 12, 1886, first 

 saw, two, on April 29 ; bulk arrived May 27 (Plunkett). September 1, 

 1884, saw a flock of five on Lake Manitoba ; the only ones I ever saw 

 (Nash). Waterhen River: October 3, 1858, a large flock of pelicans, 

 wheeling in circles far above, suddenly formed into an arrow-headed 

 figure, and struck straight south ; Oak Lake, some Pelicans (Hind). 

 In great numbers at the head of Lake Winnepegosis or about half wi.y 

 up, and evidently breeding, 1881 (Macoun). Carberry: November 5, 

 1886, found remains of a dead pelican in the hills near Smith's Lake; 

 only record (Thompson). Dalton: 1889, first saw one on May 4; next 

 seen. May 5; rare (Yoemans). Qu'Appelle: Common summer resident; 

 very plentiful on the lakes last year (1884) : towards the migratory sea- 

 son I saw flocks of upwards of 500 birds (Guernsey). Pelican observed 

 in numbers at the Grand Rapids, where the Saskatchewan enters Lake 

 Winnepeg, on the 25th of September, and a few days after a scattered 

 one or two; I believe they do not range east of Lake Winnipeg (Bla- 

 kiston). 



These birds until the last few years were in the habit of breeding in large numbers 

 at Shoal Lake, 50 miles from Winnipeg. In the summer of 1878, on the Ist of June, 

 I counted six hundred of their eggs (?) in nests on a small island of about half an acre in 

 extent. The nests consist only of a slight depression in the sand. These birds and 

 the cormorants are great friends; the nests of the latter were intermixed everywhere 

 with those of the pelicans. I counted seven hundred eggs of the cormorant on this 

 spot. Although the pelican's home and nesting place is an abode of filth, they keep 



