96 CRUISE OF THE 8TEAMER CORWIN. 



ESOCIDiE. 

 Esox lucius LiiiiitvHs. Pike. 



Aliuml.-int in :ill ]):irts of tlie Kowak. Tlu'se fishes were most numerous in the hij^oons lead- 

 iiii;' oft' from tlir i-ivcr. lurking in liic shallowest water among the mosses, fimii wliirh we con- 

 stantly startled them in walking along sliorc. We sliot numbers of tliem as they lay in the 

 mosses with hai'ely enough water to eover tht'in. It is possible that they were spawning there. 



Two specimens; Middle Kowak, August. 



PLEURONECTID^. 



Limanda aspera Pallax. 



This species was found in limited nundx^rs in August among the piles of fish at the native 

 fishing-grounds at Kotzebue Sound. It was not seen when we passed there the first of July. 



Three specimens; Kotzebue Sound, August :26. 



Pleuronectes stellatus Pdllaa. "Flounder." 



Tolerably abuntlant at Kotzebue Sound early in Jidy. 

 Two specimens; Kotzebue Sound, July '.i. 



NOTES ON MAMMALS, BIRDS, AND FISHES OBTAINED AT VARIOUS PLACES 

 BETWEEN THE ALEUTIAN ISLANDS AND KOTZEBUE SOUND. 



At SchismareflP Iidet, on August 28, I saw more shore l)irds — curlews, jilovers, godwits. 

 snipes, &c. — than I ever saw before in one day. The long-billed snipes afforded particularly 

 fine sport; they arose in flocks from the marshy ground everywhere, so that even the tyros wei'e 

 able to bag considerable numbers of them. The ponds and lakelets about Port Clarence were 

 filled with long-tail ducks in June and with widgeon in August, while shore birds of many 

 species were very abundant during both visits we made there. Hall's Island, however, I con- 

 sidered the most interesting place at which the Corwin stopped. Its hills are three thousand 

 feet or more in height, mountains almost, which the mtjst cursory examination shows to be old 

 voh'anoes. Their slopes are loailed with the heaviest of sphagnum vegetation. I found lovely 

 plants springing in ravines where the last year's snow was still lying, while more favorable 

 spots were aglow with the bright colors of flowers, whose bloom on this lonely island is unseen 

 save by the wild creatures who make their home there. I filled my game-bag with some of the 

 showiest ones, which have since been identified as follows: 



Aconitum napellus Linn. Senecio )-esedif<)lriis Less. 



RanuncnluH canns Benth. ? Gentuinn frigida Haenke. 



Cardamine pratensis L. Polemonium pulchelluin Bunge. 



Cei'asiium vidqotum L. Pedicularis capitata Adams. 



Scdiim rhudiola D. C. ~ Veronica alpina L. 



Valeriana capitata Willd. Polygonum viviparinii L. 



Polar bears are numerous. 



St. Michael's is a famous place for geese in the fall. The natives brought them on board 

 by the dozen, the assortment consisting of white-fronted, Canada, and emperor geese. A strik- 

 ing feature of the place is the large number of jfegers (Stercorarius) that fly about the bay. 



Having spent the greater part of the summer farther nt)rth, I did not have an opportunity 

 of visiting i]w. island of St. George, of the Pri])yloff group, and did not pick up many specimens, 

 except fur-seals, while at St. Paul's, the use of fire-arms being prohibited during the sealing 

 season, and my time being taken up with the seals. A week or more spent on Otter Island was 

 productive of many desiralde ornithological specimens, one species (Triiiga ddiiKiscfiisin) 

 being new to the fauna of North Anu^-ica. 



A visit to the Farallone Islands, off the Califoinian coast, where lliere are niyri;\ds of sea- 

 l)irds, had i)i'epared nn; only in a slight measures for the ornithological wonders o( the l^riby- 

 loffs. While the steamer was passing St. George's the surface of the sea was dotted with bird 



