In North-West Canada. 113 



shell markings. In stepping out of the boat, I almost trod on 

 a clutch of four handsome eggs of the Wilson Phalarope. I 

 found that either myself or someone else had previously 

 stepped on the nest, leaving a footmark, and one of the eggs 

 broken. The nest, as usual, consisted of a small circular 

 depression in the ground, lined with a few blades of grass, 

 and this nest was near the water's edge. A greater scaup 

 duck had a brood of eight young ones, swimming about one of 

 the ponds, but we did not molest them. My companion in- 

 formed me that the ponds are visited every fall by numbers 

 of snow, Brant and other species of geese, as well as a great 

 variety of ducks. Buffalo Lake and Long Lake, north-east of 

 Moosejaw, are also great resorts in the fall for all manner of 

 ducks, geese, swans, and other waterfowl. The only goose 

 that breeds in this locality is the Canada goose, a number of 

 which nest at Buffalo and Long Lakes. The snow goose 



O O 



retires to within the Arctic circle to breed, and their eggs are 

 very scarce in collections. There are four species found in 

 North America, the greater, lesser, Ross', and blue snow geese. 

 The lesser snow goose is the most plentiful of the four 

 varieties, and they are found in considerable numbers at Long 

 Lake and Rush Lake in the fall of the year, where my com- 

 panion has shot as many as thirty in one day. Sir John 

 Richardson, in the "Fauna Boreali-A.mericana," says, "The 

 eggs of the lesser snow goose are yellowish white and regu- 

 larly ovate in form, and are a little larger than the eggs of the 

 Eider duck," averaging in size 3.00x2.00. I am informed that 

 the flesh of this bird is excellent, and far superior to the 

 Canada goose in juciness and flavor, and the birds are fa- 

 vourites with sportsmen on this account. The Brant goose is 

 also a regular winter visitor to this locality. It is almost 

 cosmopolitan in its distribution, and found chiefly on the 

 sea coasts of Europe and America. It is more maritime than 

 other geese generally are, preferring the sea coast to the lakes 

 of the interior. It is by far the most numerous of all the 

 geese which visit the shores of the British Islands in winter. 

 It breeds in northern Europe and Asia and on the island of 

 H 



