°'l9i6 J Phillips, Problems in Migration. 23 



them to the New Hebrides and New Zealand. Notwithstanding 

 this, no such birds have ever been taken either there or in 

 AustraHa, New Guinea or the Polynesia Isles. He thinks there 

 must be some large shallow, quiet tracts in the Polynesian Ocean 

 where sea-weed collects. Possibly they might find a feeding ground 

 among the small coral islands between the Solomons and Australia. 



The above facts excite no end of speculation but in view of the 

 meagre data at hand and the extraordinary character of the infor- 

 mation we must wait for further reports. 



From the north Pacific coast to the Marshalls is roughly 5000 

 miles, a distance which is far greater than any trans-ocean flight 

 yet known. Obviously until we know the predominating species 

 among this body of ducks, it is almost impossible to guess at its 

 origin. The farthest Pacific point which our migrants reach is 

 the Hawaiian group. Here the Pintail and Shoveller are the only 

 common ducks, and these are by no means in really large numbers, 

 while the Baldpate, Mallard, Green-winged Teal, Buffle-head are 

 extremely rare migrants (Henshaw, 1902). The Red-breasted 

 Merganser is perhaps not quite so rare. 



From this it does not seem likely that the mysterious Marshall 

 Isle flight ever strikes the Hawaiian group. 



As to the breeding ground of tlie three species mentioned by 

 Reichenow we can at least say that it must be American, but the 

 occurrence of the Canvas-back suggests a mid-continental origin, 

 that is, provided the Canvas-back occurs in large numbers. This 

 duck is so sparsely distributed on the north Pacific coast, and is so 

 infrequent a breeder in Alaska that the Yukon Valley could hardly 

 supply a great body of migrants. 



Mr. Henshaw (Auk, 1900, p. 245) tells us of the 2000 mile flight 

 of certain migrants from the Aleutians to the Hawaiian group, 

 but remarkable as is this fact, it w^ould be entirely eclipsed by the 

 appearance of American birds 2000 miles further from our continent. 



Mr. Bent (Smith. Mic. CoUec, Vol. 56, No. 32) believes that the 

 European Teal probably breeds on the whole Aleutian chain of 

 islands, and that the American Green-winged Teal is confined 

 to the mainland of Alaska. This makes the appearance of A'^. 

 carolinensis in the Pacific still more mystifying. 



The question of the winter distribution of these ducks is scarcely 



