322 TRAVELS OF A NATURALIST 



tion from the dried skins at St. Petersbourg must be faulty. 

 The legs and feet are dark horn, the latter pale yellow 

 underneath. Bill : upper mandible dark horn, under 

 mandible paler. There is a very distinct pale streak 

 over the eye, extending to the neck, and also in front 

 of the eye to the nostrils. 



The Petchora ice was still on the move, but silently, 

 and for the most part in large floes. In the afternoon 

 it got more broken up, but it still moved very steadily 

 and silently. 



May 24. 



On Monday, the 24th of May, the new bird arrivals 

 were Pine Grosbeak and Brambling. We added these 

 two species to our list to-day. 



The former species was not uncommon, and, before we 

 got a good sight of them, rather bothered us to identify. 

 We heard a rich thrush-like song on the opposite side of 

 the valley behind the town, and a bird darted quickly 

 past me which I thought looked like a small Thrush. 

 Soon afterwards, however, birds were shot after singing, 

 perched on the topmost twigs of the pines, and they 

 turned out to be Pine Grosbeaks. 



The song is a rich warble like a Thrush's first notes, 

 intermediate between a Blackbird's and a Eedwing's. 

 The birds were easily approached and very tame. One 

 was seen also upon the ground under a fir-tree, hopping, 

 apparently in search of food, a habit I remarked before 

 when Alston and I met with the species at Suzma, near 

 Archangel. 



Only one Brambling was shot, and one or two others 

 heard. A Chaffinch was seen and heard for the second 

 time. Two specimens of the Siberian Chaffinch were 

 shot, but both, unfortunately, were lost. The notes, as 

 nearly as possible, are ' chivet,' and then two notes of 

 its song. 



