PREFACE 



In presenting this list of British Columbia Birds, I am 

 fully aware of its incompleteness, and regret very much its 

 lack of more definite information respecting certain species. 

 The difficulties in the way of procuring reliable data con- 

 cerning the birds of this Province are very great. British 

 Columbia is a country of "magnificent distances" a 

 country where the modes of travel are slow and expensive 

 compared with other portions of the Dominion a country 

 where "distribution" is a problem in itself; so much so, 

 that to obtain specimens of all our birds one must travel 

 the entire length and breadth of the Province. The 

 Cascade Mountains form an absolute barrier to many 

 species, east and west. The Gulf of Georgia shuts off 

 other species from Vancouver Island, the west coast of 

 which is the habitat of others which are strangers to the 

 waters separating the Island from the Mainland ; and 

 throughout the Province there occur other lines, purely 

 imaginary, over which certain species never pass. 



The labour of collecting together the material for this 

 list has, however, been greatly lightened by the co-operation 

 of the following personal friends, who, occupying widely 

 separated portions of the Province, have furnished me with 

 valuable notes concerning the birds of their respective dis- 

 tricts ; and to these I now offer my sincere thanks for their 

 kind assistance : 



To Mr. W. B. Anderson, of Fort Simpson and Comox ; 

 Mr. James Porter, of Dease Lake, Cassiar ; Capt. and Miss 

 Cox, of Cape Beale Light House ; Mr. Allen C. Brooks, of 

 Chilliwhack ; Mr. R. V. Griffen, of Similkameen ; the late 

 Mr. Geo. Hyde, of Beaver Pass, Cariboo ; and Mr. H. W. 

 Harvey of Clinton. 



