71 On the migration battletront 



about it over the radio," he said proudly. "Always listen to the 

 twelve-thirty news." I suggested we walk down to the river, which 

 was close by. There, from the high bank, we counted 124 white 

 pelicans and my hopes plummeted into my boots. "Mr. Mathers," 

 I said sternly, "you must have seen white pelicans." "Mr. Allen," 

 said he, drawing himself up with considerable dignity, "they were 

 not these pelicans here. I've told you what they looked like and 

 I'm sure they were the birds you're after." He closed his mouth 

 like a trap and stared at me. "All right, Mr. Mathers," I replied. 

 "I'm sure you're right. I'll get over to the airport right away and 

 search for them from the air. Better chance of finding them again 

 than beating through these willow thickets." Thanking both him 

 and his wife profusely and promising to let them know what luck 

 I had, I drove like a madman for the airport. 



When we were in the air we located the Mather place and from 

 there began a systematic search of the South Platte, toward which 

 the birds had evidently flown. Suddenly, while still some distance 

 off, I saw them, five white spots against the gray brush and brown 

 sand and water of the river bottom. We had been aloft only ten 

 minutes. The pilot, Eaton, swung over their position at less than 

 100 feet altitude, almost stalling the light plane so that I could 

 take pictures. I snapped my Contax several times and then we 

 circled back again at a higher altitude to look them over more 

 critically. They were apparently a pair and a family group of three, 

 traveling together. The young bird in the family group still showed 

 a faint but unmistakable tinge of rust on his head. Only one of 

 the three youngsters on the refuge the winter before still showed 

 at this date even this much rust color anywhere in its plumage. 

 Without a doubt the trio was the North Family, which had dis- 

 appeared from Aransas between the eleventh and the fourteenth. 

 The other pair I could not identify, but knowing their habits and 

 relationships so well, I assumed they must be the Slough Pair, 

 who lived on the adjacent territory and had disappeared during 

 the same period. 



On the previous day a pilot at the airport near the Cheyenne 

 Bottoms, in Kansas, had seen three birds that were evidently 

 whooping cranes. Others were observed near Washburn, North 

 Dakota, on April 23 by Harry Jones, and a few days later near 



