CHAP. XIV. 



THE DELTA. 



167 



thrown outside the house to be trodden under foot. There 

 was an excellent shop in the place, where we laid in a store 

 of tobacco, white flour, &o. In the village we saw a 

 sand-martin and a magpie, but no sparrows. 



On leaving Viski we entered upon the true delta, a laby- 

 rinth of water and islands, one almost as dead a flat as the 

 other. The islands were almost all alike ; but a little while 

 ago they had lain three or four feet deep under the overflow 

 of the great river; they were monotonous willow-swamps, 

 with here and there narrow strips of sandy land appearing 

 thickly covered with grass, and sparingly sprinkled with wil- 

 lows and alders ; everywhere were the winding kourias and 

 chains of lakelets. On the dry places ducks of various sorts 

 were breeding. We identified a shoveller. There were 

 widgeons, scoters, and teal. On one island we found two 

 pintails' nests with eggs, and I shot our first tufted duck,* 

 a species which we found very rare in the Petchora. As soon 

 as I fired there rose between me and it a flock of red-necked 

 phalaropes,t which alighted between me and the floating 



* The tufted duck (FwUgula cristata, 

 Leach) appears to be confined to the 

 eastern hemisphere, occasionally breed- 

 ing both in England and Scotland, 

 though it must be considered princi- 

 pally as a winter visitant to the British 

 Islands. This duck has a wide range, 

 both during the breeding season and in 

 winter, being found in summer as far 

 north as the limit of forest growth, 

 and also throughout the basin of the 

 Baltic. In winter it is very common 

 in the basin of the Mediterranean, 



ranging eastwards through Scinde, 

 Central and Southern India, China 

 and Japan. In the valley of the Pet- 

 chora it appeared to be rather scarce, 

 and we did not see it further north 

 than latitude 67J. 



t The red-necked phalarope (Phala- 

 ropus hyperboreus, Linn.) is a circum- 

 polar biid, and breeds in the north of 

 Scotland, being only a spring and 

 autumn visitor on migration to the 

 rest of the British Islands. It fre- 

 quents in summer the tundras above 



