'0 1917 



THE OTTAWA NATURALIST. 



Vol. XI. OTTAWA, NOVEMBER, 1897. No. 8. 



NOTES ON THE BIRDS OF THE MAGDALEN 

 ISLANDS, P.Q.* 



By Rev. C. J. Young, B.A., Lansdowne, Ont. 



My first impressions of the Magdalen Islands were far 

 other than I had expected ; instead of barren rocks and a tree- 

 less waste, I found the majority of them to consist of red sand- - 

 stone cliffs and dome-shaped hills ; the latter green to the very 

 top. Grass grows in abundance, and a good deal of hay is 

 raised. The timber is not large, the woods consisting entirely of 

 spruce and fir, with a few birch trees, but no hard wood. In low 

 places there is a growth o£ alder and willow ; and this completes 

 the larger vegetation. On June the 15th the alders were only 

 partially leafed out ; potatoes were just planted ; and oats an 

 inch or two above the ground ; but after the 25th, vegetation 

 became quite rapid, and the Islands assumed a brilliant verdure. 

 Now for the birds, — on the 15th, near the Parsonage, I saw the 

 black snow-bird, the blue-jay, crows, robins, and a few others. 

 On the following morning, rising early, I was driven to the north 

 shore of Grindstone Island, and there spent the day on the 

 beach and among the stunted firs that abound near the shore. 

 Among these, for the first time I met with the fox-coloured 

 sparrow. He is a fair songster, and certainly a noteworthy bird 

 with his fulvous plumage and skulking ways. I saw five adults 

 and one young bird just able to fly to-day (June i6th). Though 

 I searched for the nest a long time, 1 was not successful in find- 

 ing it ; their nests are hard to find. Another common bird was 

 the black poll-warbler. They are everywhere and frequent the 

 same localities as the fox-sparrow. I noticed a female with a 



* Being a narrative of a visit, during the past season, to the Magdalen Islands, 

 situated in the Gulf of Saint Lawrence, between 47° and 48° North Latitude, and 

 between 61° and 62° West Longitude. — Editor. 



