ORNITHOLOGIST 



— AND — 



OOLOGIST. 



An Ornithologist's Summer in 

 Labrador. 



BY M. ABBOTT KRAZAK. 



The 15th day of May, 1884 found me at 

 Esciuimaux Point on the Labrador coast, and 

 althouf^h I had been travelling for some five 

 weeks endeavoring to reach the boon of my 

 exertions where eggs could be "gathered" I 

 still had the worst part of the journey before 

 me before I could reach C^aj^e Whittle, whii'h 

 from all accounts I could gather was the cen- 

 tral breeding point for the thousands of sea 

 birds which called Labrador their home. This 

 part of my trip proved to be the most disagree- 

 able of any. I now undertook a small, leaky, 

 unseavvorthy trading schooner; a rocky, bar- 

 ren coast; a gale of wind on an average of 

 every third day ; and things not conducive to 

 very rapid travelling, so full four weeks more 

 dragged wearllj' along l)efore I was finally lo- 

 cated on June Kith, at AVolf Bay, which is only 

 a few miles to the westward of Cape Wliittle. 

 To explain the trip a little more fully, I will 

 say that in the vicinity of Esquimaux Point the 

 islands and main-land are well wooded with 

 principally spruce trees wJiieh grow many of 

 them to a height of sixty feet. About these 

 sea birds are not abundant, a few Black backed 

 and Herring Gulls and a scattering pair of Ei- 

 ders being all that is left of the feathered hordes 

 which have long since been driven away bj'^ 

 repacious eggers. The Indians must certainl3^ 

 be spared any blame for the exceedingly rapid 

 decrease which has taken place in the numbers 

 of Gulls, Murres and Eiders which once inhab- 

 ited the whole Labrador coast. Their wants 

 are easily satisfied and I could not help giving 

 them credit for showing a more discerning 

 judgment than the white people, for, after 

 "running" an island once or twice, and that 

 not thoroughly, the birds were then left alone 

 undisturbed. Neither can the white residents 



be held to account for but a very small share 

 in the extermination, for although about every 

 family preserves a few eggs for winter's use, 

 still the numbers so held could not have been 

 as one in ten thousand to what were laid there 

 twenty-five years ago. 



The Halifax "eggers" come in for a good 

 share of the blame, and I can hardly feel but 

 it is rightfully bestowed ; however, they can be 

 held responsible for the decrease of but one 

 species, namely the jMurre, foi- that was the 

 only species they disturbed. Their method 

 was this: a vessel of about forty tons would 

 leave in the Spring with say a dozen men 

 besides the regular crew, for the breeding 

 grounds, and on reaching there these extra 

 hands were stationed about in pairs on every 

 island where Murres congiegated in suflicient 

 numbers. The first step was then to gather all 

 the eggs that had already been laid and throw 

 them into the sea, which was necessary so that 

 all the eggs which were retained for shipment 

 might be fresh, and after that the eggs would 

 be gathered regularly every morning for a 

 Murre never deserts its chosen home and al- 

 though its clutch is but one egg, still if that 

 is taken from them they will continue to lay 

 with the religious regularity of a hen. In 

 about ten days these men will have gathered 

 a sutficient load and the ves«el, which during 

 this interval has been laying in some conven- 

 ient bay, is now prepared for the return trip. 

 The first thing to do is to remove the hatches 

 and to throw over the ballast, then the hold is 

 covered to the depth of about three feet with 

 the long soft moss found growing on most of 

 the neighboring islands. After this is done the 

 eggs are piled loose upon the top of this bed to 

 the depth of about two and one-half or three 

 feet right over the whole hold, and the vessel 

 starts for home leaving the eggers behind to 

 gather another load which is sure to be ready 

 before her return. The second is generally her 

 last trip, but in successful seasons as many as 



Copyright, 1887, by F. H. Carpentek and F. B. Webster. 



