108 (UlUISE OF STEAMER COR WIN IN THE ARCTIC OCEAN. 



Sea islands or the Silx-riau sliore (liiriiig tlie cruise of the Corwin, nor was it seen north of Beriiiff 

 Strait, altliongii specimens were ln-ought me from tlie KotzeV)iie Sound region during my residence 

 at Saint Michael's. It is very numerous along the course of the Yukon and other rivers in the 

 interior of Alaska, and breeds throughout the range given. 



LARUS PHILADELPHIiE lOrd.i Gray. 



(155.) Bonaparte's Gull. 



This is a M r.\ ran- bird along the Alaskan coast of Bering Sea, being found tliere during the 

 migrations merely as a straggler front its breeding grounds in the interior. There is no record of 

 either this or the jtreceding species from any of the Bering Sea islands, but the latter is far less 

 numerous and widely sjjread on the shores of this sea than the former. 1 found Bonaparte's Gull 

 numerous only in one instance in the vicinity of Saint iMichaePs. This was towards the end of 

 September, 1880, \vhen for a few days they were abundant along the canal which sei)arates Saint 

 Michael's Island from the mainland. There is no record of its presence along the shore of rhe 

 Arctic, although it may jiossibly occur at the head of Kotzebue Sound. 



RHODOST£THIA ROSEA (Macgill.) Bruch. 



(150.) RossE's Gull. 



During my residence at Saint .Michael's I secured a single specimen of this bird. It was a 

 young of the jear, and although it was taken the first of October, yel it still retained, nearly 

 complete, its imperfect mottled ])lumage. This was the first specimen of this rare and beautiful 

 bird taken in the region about Bering Strait. Since this cajjture, however, we have still further 

 knowledge of this bii'd's distribution. Xordenskiokl obtained a beautiful adult specimen which 

 was shot from the vessel while frozen in on the Siberian shore near Bering Strait on July 1, 1879> 

 and the naturalist of the Jeanuette, Jlr. Newcomb, writes in a recently i)ublishe(l letter to the 

 New York Herald that " In the middle of October, 1879, a pair of these birds came along the lead 

 where I was sitting, and when within range I fired, tumbling one down into the water; the other 

 turned and 1 got it. They proved to be Rosse's Gulls {Rliodo-stethia roxea), an exceedingly rare 

 species, very buoyant and graceful on the wing; beautiful pearly-blue on the back, vermilion feet 

 and legs, and lovely tea-rose on the breast aud underpart, the rosy tint being scarcely a color; 

 then blending m exquisite harmony with the pearly-blue of the upi)er i>arts. They were in fall 

 feather. I afterwards got three more in adult and immature plumage." 



While the Jeanuette party were ou their way toward the Siberian coast, after the loss of their 

 vessel, a number of these Gulls were see", but were not obtained. Eight sp(!cimens of this 

 beautiful bird were secured l)y Mr. Newcomb during the drift of the Jeanuette, but during the 

 retreat of this party toward the coast all but three sjiecimens iu the most interesting states of 

 ])lumage were abandoned, with many other results of their long captivity in the ice. These thiee 

 siiecimens are now ju'eserved iu the Smithsonian collection, and with the one obtained by me at 

 Saint Michael's form a series of four birds the only ones at i)reseut in any American collection, 

 and representing each a different state of plumage. The richness of the rosy tint on the breast 

 is incom])ar;ible with that on any other gull which 1 lune ever seen. One of the specimens 

 brought by Mr. Newcomb still retains the (lolor, and is of an extremely rich peach-blossom i)ink, 

 much richer even in this faded condition thau is usual in life upon gulls which are ornamenteil 

 with this rosy suffusion during the breeding season. It is to be hoped that some of the several 

 American expeditions now in the north may secure other specimens of this interesting and lovely 

 Gull, .which is the most beautiful of its kind, and add still more to its history. And now that the 

 range of the bird is known to extend around the entire circumpolar regions, the next point to 

 ascertain will be its breeding- ground, and peculiar habits duriug the nesting season. Notes upon 

 its habits are particularly desirable, as thus far the naturalists who have obtained specimens of 

 this variety have only recorded the facts of their capture. 



