148 GEESE 



death of the pilot caused the abandonment of the trip. In 1940, as re- 

 lated above, the nesting grounds of the little Ross's Goose were discovered 

 by others. 



"The path of migration of this goose seems to be different from that 

 of any other species. It is a fair presumption that the principal route 

 coincides with the districts in which the species is most common. The 

 greater number pass from the breeding grounds to Great Slave Lake and 

 Lake Athabasca, continue south to central and western Montana, and 

 then turn southwest, cross the Rocky Mountains, and pass to central and 

 southern California" (Cooke, 1906). "Thus, instead of turning to the 

 southeast, to winter on the Gulf coast with the other eastern geese and 

 ducks which have been traveling companions, the Ross Goose parts com- 

 pany with them at the national boundary line, and goes southwest across 

 the Rocky Mountains to California" (Grinnell, Bryant, and Storer, 

 1918). 



An instance of the former abundance of these geese is given by Wil- 

 liams (1886), who, regarding a flock he saw on a bar in the Missouri 

 River, says that they "presented a rather remarkable sight, consisting as 

 it did of several thousand individuals squatting closely together along 

 the edge of the bar. Here and there birds were constantly standing up 

 and flapping their wings, then settling down again, all the while a con- 

 fused gabble, half gooselike, half ducklike, arising from the whole flock. 

 We approached to within a hundred yards or so, when the geese lightly 

 arose to a considerable height and flew off over the prairie, where they 

 soon alighted and began to feed on the short, green grass. While flying, 

 often two or three birds would dart off from the main flock, and, one 

 behind the other, swing around in great curves, quite after the manner 

 of the little chimney swift in the East." 



The flesh of this goose is highly esteemed, and before the prohibition 

 of market shooting large numbers of these geese were sold on the mar- 

 kets in California. 



