﻿342 
  ANNUA.L 
  EEPORT 
  SMITHSONIAN 
  INSTITUTION, 
  1927 
  

  

  Because 
  of 
  their 
  large 
  size, 
  these 
  birds, 
  although 
  protected 
  by 
  Fed- 
  

   eral 
  law, 
  have 
  yielded 
  many 
  returns. 
  

  

  As 
  a 
  family, 
  gulls 
  are 
  more 
  or 
  less 
  nomadic, 
  and 
  true 
  migratory 
  

   flights 
  ai^pear 
  to 
  be 
  the 
  exception 
  rather 
  than 
  the 
  rule. 
  This 
  is 
  

   borne 
  out 
  by 
  the 
  banding 
  returns, 
  as 
  in 
  some 
  seasons 
  the 
  birds 
  have 
  

   remained 
  during 
  the 
  winter 
  in 
  northern 
  latitudes, 
  even 
  moving 
  still 
  

   farther 
  north. 
  Birds 
  marked 
  as 
  fledglings 
  in 
  northern 
  Lake 
  Michi- 
  

   gan 
  have 
  been 
  detected 
  during 
  the 
  same 
  season 
  in 
  the 
  region 
  of 
  the 
  

   Gulf 
  of 
  St. 
  Lawrence. 
  On 
  the 
  other 
  hand, 
  long 
  flights 
  are 
  not 
  infre- 
  

   quent, 
  specimens 
  from 
  the 
  Great 
  Lakes 
  colonies 
  having 
  been 
  reported 
  

   south 
  to 
  Florida, 
  Louisiana, 
  and 
  southern 
  Texas, 
  while 
  two 
  proceeded 
  

   south 
  as 
  far 
  as 
  the 
  State 
  of 
  Vera 
  Cruz, 
  Mexico. 
  

  

  White 
  pelican. 
  — 
  Although 
  banded 
  in 
  comparatively 
  small 
  numbers, 
  

   returns 
  from 
  white 
  pelicans 
  {Pelecanus 
  erythrorhynchos) 
  have 
  par- 
  

   tially 
  indicated 
  the 
  routes 
  taken 
  by 
  these 
  birds 
  from 
  some 
  of 
  their 
  

   breeding 
  grounds. 
  One 
  banded 
  in 
  southern 
  Saskatchewan 
  was 
  re- 
  

   captured 
  five 
  days 
  later 
  in 
  South 
  Dakota. 
  The 
  large 
  colony 
  of 
  

   these 
  birds 
  that 
  regularly 
  breed 
  at 
  Yellowstone 
  Lake, 
  in 
  the 
  Yellow- 
  

   stone 
  National 
  Park, 
  Wyo., 
  was 
  studied 
  in 
  1922, 
  and 
  about 
  100 
  young 
  

   birds 
  were 
  banded. 
  Several 
  returns 
  were 
  received 
  showing 
  that 
  after 
  

   leaving 
  the 
  breeding 
  grounds 
  the 
  pelicans 
  crossed 
  a 
  low 
  pass 
  north- 
  

   west 
  of 
  the 
  lake 
  and 
  then 
  pursued 
  a 
  line 
  of 
  flight 
  almost 
  due 
  south 
  

   through 
  the 
  Great 
  Basin. 
  One 
  was 
  killed 
  at 
  Otatitlan, 
  State 
  of 
  Vera 
  

   Cruz, 
  on 
  the 
  east 
  side 
  of 
  the 
  tableland 
  of 
  Mexico. 
  (Cf. 
  Ward, 
  1924.) 
  

  

  Mallard. 
  — 
  Of 
  all 
  species 
  that 
  have 
  been 
  banded, 
  the 
  mallard 
  

   {Anas 
  flatyrhynchas) 
  has 
  yielded 
  the 
  largest 
  percentage 
  of 
  returns, 
  

   because 
  of 
  the 
  many 
  reports 
  from 
  sportsmen. 
  In 
  the 
  United 
  States 
  

   this 
  duck 
  is 
  most 
  abundant 
  in 
  the 
  Mississippi 
  Valley, 
  and 
  it 
  is 
  here 
  

   that 
  the 
  majority 
  were 
  banded, 
  about 
  4,000 
  having 
  been 
  trapped 
  in 
  

   the 
  State 
  of 
  Illinois 
  by 
  the 
  writer 
  alone. 
  (PL 
  5, 
  fig. 
  1.) 
  Others 
  have 
  

   been 
  banded 
  on 
  the 
  Atlantic, 
  Pacific, 
  and 
  Gulf 
  coasts 
  and 
  at 
  several 
  

   points 
  in 
  Canada. 
  About 
  1,800 
  returns 
  have 
  been 
  received. 
  These 
  

   show 
  the 
  line 
  of 
  flight 
  with 
  much 
  accuracy 
  between 
  points 
  in 
  Macken- 
  

   zie, 
  Alberta, 
  Manitoba, 
  and 
  Saskatchewan 
  in 
  the 
  north, 
  to 
  the 
  coast 
  

   of 
  Louisiana 
  and 
  Texas 
  in 
  the 
  south. 
  As 
  would 
  be 
  expected, 
  the 
  

   flight 
  extends 
  over 
  a 
  rather 
  wide 
  front 
  through 
  the 
  Dakotas, 
  Ne- 
  

   braska, 
  Kansas, 
  and 
  Oklahoma, 
  although 
  the 
  majority 
  of 
  the 
  records 
  

   have 
  been 
  received 
  from 
  points 
  close 
  to 
  the 
  main 
  stream. 
  Upon 
  

   reaching 
  the 
  region 
  of 
  the 
  Gulf 
  of 
  Mexico 
  some 
  of 
  these 
  birds 
  evi- 
  

   dently 
  work 
  westward, 
  as 
  indicated 
  by 
  the 
  returns 
  from 
  the 
  Texan 
  

   coast. 
  Birds 
  banded 
  in 
  central 
  Illinois 
  and 
  Missouri 
  also 
  have 
  been 
  

   taken 
  as 
  far 
  west 
  as 
  Colorado, 
  Wyoming, 
  Montana, 
  and 
  California. 
  

  

  Mallards 
  banded 
  in 
  southwestern 
  Ontario 
  in 
  the 
  autumn 
  no 
  doubt 
  

   accompany 
  the 
  large 
  flocks 
  of 
  black 
  ducks, 
  flying 
  southwest 
  to 
  the 
  

  

  