150 Hersey, Birds at St. Michael, Alaska. [ack 
are abandoned, with doors and windows boarded up, while the river 
steamers, with a few exceptions, are drawn up on the beach where 
they are gradually falling to pieces. The outlook for the future is 
as dreary as the surrounding country. 
Fortunately the influx of so many people did not have any disas- 
trous effect on the bird life of the country. Without doubt some 
birds were shot for food, as they still are, but in the main, the people 
were too engrossed in their pursuit of gold to do much hunting. 
During the writer’s -cruise along the Alaskan coast in 1914, 
several short stops were made at St. Michael and in 1915 plans were 
laid to spend the entire summer at this place. Favorable ice con- 
ditions allowed us to reach our destination as early as May 29 and 
the entire time until September 8 was spent there. Through the 
courtesy of the War Department quarters were provided at the 
Army Post and from there the writer explored a large part of the 
surrounding country. 
At the time of my arrival and for a few days afterward, the sun 
shone from a cloudless sky with a warmth and brightness that I 
have seldom seen exceeded anywhere. This condition, however, 
was too good to last and there came, soon afterwards, a series of 
southerly gales accompanied by high tides that flooded all the low 
country and destroyed the nests of large numbers of breeding water- 
fowl. ‘The gales subsiding, there followed several weeks of as 
disagreeable weather as can be imagined. Heavy clouds obscured 
the sun and fogs and light rains were frequent. A slight breeze, at 
times, piled up great cloud masses which would chase one another 
across the sky for hours, without breaking sufficiently to allow a 
view of the sun. The breeze at last dying out, the fog would again 
settle over everything. This condition lasted until about August 20 
when a few sharp frosts seemed to clear the atmosphere and more 
pleasant weather followed although from this time, until the end of 
my stay, high winds prevailed. 
Taken altogether, the climate of St. Michael is one of the most 
disagreeable I have ever experienced. Nevertheless it appears 
to have no depressing effect on the bird life of the country. Water- 
fowl are particularly numerous,— loons, gulls and ducks being 
most abundant. 
Of the Loons the Red-throated is the commonest and the one 
