﻿344 
  ANNUAL 
  REPORT 
  SMITHSONIAN 
  INSTITUTION, 
  1927 
  

  

  The 
  birds 
  banded 
  in 
  Kansas 
  are 
  of 
  special 
  interest 
  as 
  they 
  were 
  

   all 
  young 
  hatched 
  at 
  the 
  point 
  of 
  banding. 
  Upon 
  migrating 
  they 
  

   moved 
  south 
  through 
  Texas 
  to 
  the 
  State 
  of 
  Campeche 
  in 
  southern 
  

   Mexico, 
  and 
  the 
  next 
  year 
  they 
  traveled 
  north 
  through 
  Nebraska 
  at 
  

   least 
  to 
  Minnesota. 
  Blue-winged 
  teals 
  banded 
  in 
  Ontario 
  have 
  

   seemingly 
  followed 
  the 
  general 
  routes 
  of 
  the 
  black 
  duck, 
  although 
  

   the 
  returns 
  are 
  more 
  equally 
  dispersed 
  along 
  the 
  Atlantic 
  coast 
  and 
  

   the 
  Mississippi 
  Valley. 
  One 
  bird 
  that 
  probably 
  followed 
  the 
  coastal 
  

   route 
  was 
  taken 
  on 
  the 
  island 
  of 
  Trinidad, 
  British 
  West 
  Indies, 
  

   about 
  75 
  days 
  after 
  banding, 
  while 
  another 
  was 
  killed 
  during 
  the 
  

   following 
  autumn 
  near 
  Burlingame, 
  Calif. 
  

  

  Pmtail. 
  — 
  The 
  pintail 
  {Dafi}<i 
  acuta), 
  which 
  as 
  a 
  species 
  i.s 
  almost 
  

   cosmopolitan, 
  probably 
  breeds 
  farther 
  north 
  than 
  any 
  other 
  of 
  the 
  

   Anatince. 
  Banding 
  of 
  these 
  birds 
  has 
  been 
  done 
  mostly 
  in 
  the 
  Missis- 
  

   sippi 
  Valley 
  States 
  and 
  in 
  California. 
  It 
  accordingly 
  is 
  not 
  surpris- 
  

   ing 
  that 
  the 
  general 
  route 
  of 
  migration 
  of 
  the 
  former 
  group 
  appears 
  

   to 
  be 
  similar 
  to 
  that 
  of 
  the 
  mallard, 
  except 
  that 
  the 
  pintail.s 
  no 
  doubt 
  

   push 
  farther 
  north. 
  Several 
  records 
  have 
  been 
  received 
  from 
  north- 
  

   ern 
  Manitoba, 
  Alberta, 
  and 
  the 
  Northwest 
  Territory. 
  

  

  Seven 
  birds 
  banded 
  in 
  Kansas 
  and 
  in 
  the 
  Mississippi 
  Valley 
  have 
  

   been 
  reported 
  from 
  California. 
  Pintails 
  are 
  notoriously 
  high 
  flyers, 
  

   and 
  as 
  a 
  matter 
  of 
  fact, 
  in 
  view 
  of 
  the 
  many 
  occurrences 
  of 
  this 
  and 
  

   other 
  species 
  of 
  ducks 
  on 
  lakes 
  and 
  streams 
  at 
  relatively 
  high 
  alti- 
  

   tudes, 
  it 
  may 
  be 
  considered 
  doubtful 
  if 
  the 
  mountains 
  anywhere 
  offer 
  

   an 
  impassible 
  barrier 
  to 
  such 
  strong 
  flying 
  birds, 
  although 
  they 
  prob- 
  

   ably 
  have 
  a 
  certain 
  directing 
  influence 
  in 
  much 
  the 
  same 
  manner 
  as 
  

   does 
  a 
  large 
  and 
  important 
  river. 
  The 
  records 
  from 
  the 
  birds 
  banded 
  

   by 
  Doctor 
  Wetmore 
  (1923) 
  at 
  Great 
  Salt 
  Lake, 
  Utah, 
  have 
  already 
  

   shown 
  the 
  existence 
  of 
  a 
  flj'way 
  from 
  that 
  point 
  to 
  the 
  great 
  valleys 
  

   of 
  California. 
  It 
  is, 
  however, 
  curious 
  that 
  all 
  returns 
  from 
  pintails 
  

   banded 
  in 
  California 
  are 
  from 
  points 
  on 
  the 
  Pacific 
  coast, 
  north 
  to 
  

   Alaska, 
  none 
  having 
  been 
  reported 
  from 
  eastern 
  points. 
  (PI. 
  5, 
  

   fig. 
  2.) 
  

  

  GacMing 
  goose. 
  — 
  Among 
  the 
  returns 
  received 
  from 
  banded 
  Canada 
  

   geese 
  {Branta 
  canadensis) 
  are 
  between 
  40 
  and 
  50 
  for 
  the 
  smallest 
  

   North 
  American 
  race, 
  the 
  cackling 
  goose 
  {Branta 
  c. 
  minima) 
  .^ 
  that 
  

   are 
  particularly 
  noteworthy. 
  These 
  birds 
  were 
  banded 
  during 
  the 
  

   summer 
  of 
  1924 
  in 
  the 
  vicinit}^ 
  of 
  Hooper 
  Bay, 
  northwestern 
  Alaska. 
  

   The 
  returns, 
  received 
  during 
  the 
  following 
  shooting 
  season, 
  show 
  well 
  

   the 
  line 
  of 
  flight 
  south 
  along 
  the 
  coast 
  of 
  British 
  Columbia 
  by 
  way 
  of 
  

   the 
  Queen 
  Charlotte 
  Islands 
  to 
  the 
  mouth 
  of 
  the 
  Columbia 
  River. 
  

   At 
  this 
  point 
  the 
  route 
  turns 
  inland 
  for 
  a 
  short 
  distance 
  and 
  then 
  

   resumes 
  a 
  southward 
  direction, 
  reaching 
  its 
  terminus 
  at 
  winter 
  quar- 
  

   ters 
  around 
  the 
  shores 
  of 
  Tule 
  Lake 
  in 
  Oregon 
  and 
  California 
  and 
  in 
  

  

  