214 General Notes. \^^^ 



Chen hyperborea. Snow Goose. — Although they do not spend the 

 winter there, as do the other geese, the Snow Goose often stops for a few 

 days on the lake. Two years ago I witnessed the alighting of a flock of 

 these geese, that, at the lowest estimate of several persons present, num- 

 bered three or four thousand. 



Branta canadensis. Canada Goose. — The Canada Goose, the finest of 

 all American waterfowl, is well represented on Elsinore I,ake. At the 

 time of mj stay there was a flock of seventeen, making the same regular 

 flights, and behaving exactly as the other geese did. 



Ardea herodias. Great Blue Heron. — We saw three or four of these 

 birds during our stay, some fishing in the shallows, others soaring in 

 great circles in the air. Thev were unusually wild, doubtless having 

 been much shot at. 



Recurvirostra americana. American Avocet. — One flock of five of 

 these birds was observed feeding on the mud-flats. These were the 

 only ones we saw, although given to understand that they were by no 

 means rare. 



Limosa fedoa. Marbled Godwit. — Our observations of this bird were 

 confined to one specimen found dead and partly decomposed. Its long, 

 slightly upcurved bill and brown mottled plumage at once identified it. 



Tringa minutilla. Least Sandpiper. — These interesting little birds 

 were common on the shores of the lake, their shrill, piping cries and 

 tiny bodies being in evidence everywhere. 



.^gialitis vocifera. Killdeer Plover. — The Killdeer were common 

 on the south side of the lake, although I saw none on the other side. This 

 is hard to account for, and the only reason I can give is that the south 

 side is clean sand, instead of mud, and shelves off steeply. 



Fulica americana. American Coot. — This bird was by far the com- 

 monest on the lake, there being scarcely a hundred yards of shore without 

 scores of ' Mud-hens,' as they are called. At some points their numbers 

 were incredible, fairly blackening the water. — Chas. B. Nordhoff, /?et/- 

 lands^ Calif. 



