368 



NA TURE 



[Atigusi 30, 1877 



(C nasiitus), Muksun (C muksuii), Peljedka (C pelet). 

 Omul (C omul), Common Sikloja or Seldj (C albiila ?). 



The common Coregonus is said to be found in the 

 Jenissci the whole year round. The Tschir, Njelma, and 

 Muksun are seen almost simultaneously in early spring, 

 the Tschir first beginning to ascend, and then the other 

 two almost simultaneously, or the Njelma rather earlier. 

 Finally masses of the Sikloja, and last of the Omul, make 

 their appearance. These seldom go above the rapids 

 between Podkamennoje Tunguska, and Asiuova. There 

 is no accurate information about the Pclet, but it does not 

 appear to go far from the mouth of the river. 



The bird world was sparingly represented on the 

 Jenissei. In the south the Passcrcs were most numerous. 

 In the neighbourhood of the limit of trees on the tundra 

 and at the LSriochovska and Nichandrovska Islands the 

 swimming birds and waders first became more numerous. 

 Cofymhiis sepientrioualis, Hare Ida glacialis, Oidcmiafusca 

 and iiis^ra, Fuligula inarila, Anas pwnclopc and acuta, 

 and Cjoni/s bnuickii occurred ,here in great numbers, 

 but with a few others were the only species of the order 

 Natatores that could be found in those northsrn regions. 

 A number of birds, for instance geese, Aiiscr sa^ctuin and 

 alhifrons, and swans, occur first at the period of migration 

 in autumn, when the uncommon red-necked goose, Aiiscr 

 rujicollis, is also met with not unfrequently. Altogether 

 140 to 150 species, of which only fifteen to twenty were 

 extra-Scandinavian, have been observed during the sum- 

 mer, among them about twenty-five Natatora and twenty 

 Raptores. It is singular that, for instance, at Tolstonos, 

 69° 55' N. lat., accordingly beyond the limit of trees, 

 many small birds belonging to the order Passrres occur. 

 Schmidt there found ten species, to which number we are 

 able to add four more, viz., Friiii^illa li?iaria, Einbtriza 

 pusilla, Saxicola a'iiantlit\ and Pliyllopneusic trocJtilus. 

 A number of birds in Siberia are found drawing more 

 and more to the west. It is stated, for instance, that the 

 species, .llauda alpcstris, Einhcriza rustica, and piisilla, 

 &c., which formerly could only be met with in .Siberia 

 and Eastern Russia, are now found in Finland and 

 Western Russia, and indeed even within Scandinavia. In 

 the time of Pallas the Ural formed the western limit of 

 the E»ibe?'iza aureola, which is now common in the whole 

 north of Russia. It is therefore not impossible that part 

 of the birds at present peculiar to North Russia and 

 Siberia may in the future belong to the fauna of Sweden. 

 Trybom states that at Krasnojarsk, the insect fauna was 

 abundant and very unlike the Scandinavian. As the 

 party descended the river the insects diminished in 

 number more speedily than could have been expected, 

 those strangest to the Swedes generally disappearing 

 first. Where the wood had been burned lately, and vege- 

 tation had not been able to regain its ordinary condition, 

 the insect fauna was also poor. Compared with the 

 phanerogamous plants occurring within the same area the 

 Scandinavian insects taken overhead are immeasurably 

 more numerous than those of the Jenissei River Valley. 

 It is on the tundra tliat the most which are common to 

 Scandinavia are found. In the collections made the 

 Coleoptcra are most numerously represented, then the 

 Hymcnoptcra, Diptcra, Lvpidoptira, Neuroptcra, and 

 Orthopicra. The number of species collected is believed 

 to exceed l,oco, among them about fifty kinds of diurnal 

 Lcpidoptera. Of these two-thirds are Scandinavian. Of 

 the insects collected about Krasnojarsk only the half are 

 Swedish. The four species [Colias pahcno, L., and Boothii, 

 Ross, Pieris napi, L., and Aroyuuts pah-s, W. V.) found 

 at the Nikandrovska Islands are all Swedish. The dis- 

 tribution to the north or south was for many species dif- 

 ferent from that in Scandinavia. Thus Parart^a liiera, 

 Hiibn., ceased there at least three degrees farther south 

 than in Sweden. Lycicna acts, Ochs., was not found farther 

 north than at Nikulina, 60" 25' N. lat. Pieris daplidice, 

 L., was, on the other hand, found as far as Fatianova and 



Lycccna argiolus, L., at Turucharsk (65^ 55' N. lat.), 

 Heteropterus sylvius. Knock., which was very common as 

 far as Krasnojarsk, was also found there. Argynnis 

 aphirapc, Hiibn., is found in Sweden six degrees farther 

 south than it was seen on the Jenissei, but Arg. /rc/a, 

 Thbg., on the contrary, two degrees more to the south in 

 the latter place. Polyonunatus hcllc, W. V., is pretty 

 common on the Jenissei, two degrees farther south than 

 in Sweden. 



Arnell states that the moss flora of the Lower Jenissei, 

 like that of the whole of Siberia, generally may be said to 

 be almost completely unknown to science, only eighteen 

 species of mosses being previously known. The number 

 collected during the expedition may, perhaps, as far as 

 may be judged before the material is thoroughly worked 

 out, be reckoned at about 300, many being foreign to 

 Scandinavia and many even new to science. The most 

 peculiar localities on the Lower Jenissei are the tree 

 stems on the banks, which are periodically overflowed. 

 The stems receive a coating of earth often to a height of 

 many feet above the ground, and form an excellent 

 locality for mosses. Here are found not only some 

 Scandinavian mosses as Lcskca polycarpa, Myrinia, 

 AinblvslCi^ium ripiiriuin, Fontiiialis hypnoides , Neckera 

 undulala, lloiualia trichomauoidcs, Pylaisca (in an unend- 

 ing variety of forms), &c., but also and especially by two 

 non-Scandinavian mosses, namely, the uncommon genuine 

 Tii/iiuia ncgdpolitana and an exceedingly pretty Eurhyii- 

 chiuin concinnum, formerly referred to Myiirclla or a 

 peculiar family of Aclirolepis, but undoubtedly belonging 

 to Eurliyiichiuin. 



The masses of decayed stems found in the forests in 

 incomparably larger numbers than in Scandinavia form 

 another peculiar locality. They are characterised espe- 

 cially by Dicrana fragilt/oliuin and/itsccsccus, which here 

 exhibit all possible transition forms to each other, and a 

 number of Hepaticce, part of them foreign to Sweden. 

 Mountain localities, especially with primitive rocks, are 

 seldom met with on the Jenissei. The mosses peculiar to 

 primitive rocks were found very sparingly. Griniinia and 

 Rhacoinitriuiii were seldom met with. Of these two families 

 Grinitnia apocarpa, which is not particular as to what it 

 grows on, is the only species which in some degree is dis- 

 tributed over the region. Only once was a Rliacoinitrium 

 found in the whole distance from Krasnojarsk to the limit 

 of tiees, about 1,660 miles; first north of the limit of 

 trees the family began to take to some extent the place it 

 has in Sweden. The moss flora of the Lower Jenissei may 

 be said to be specially characterised by its richness in 

 Mitia and MarchantiacccE. The following were also richly 

 represented ■. — Splaclmacea- (with eight species). Poly- 

 tric/iuin, Biyutii (particularly towards the north, in very 

 beautiful forms, partly new), Wcbcra, Dicranuin, Enca- 

 Ivpta and Sphagnum, &c. Some of the greatest Scan- 

 dniaviaii rarities were found, as Orlhothccium intricatiiin, 

 Mvnrclla julacea and apiculata, Hylocontium oakcsii, 

 Pogonatiim capillare, Oliirotrichutn hcrigatuin, Cincli- 

 dium subrotundum, all ivith fruit. Enormous masses, in 

 which two species of Riccia occurred, were found close to 

 the water's edge on the clay banks inundated during 

 summer the whole way from the Nikandrovska Islands to 

 Jeniseisk. In Scandinavia the northernmost represen- 

 tative of this family does not go farther north than about 

 the sixty-second degree of latitude. Extensive collec- 

 tions of fresh-water alga; were also made, but no detailed 

 account of them can yet be given. 



Arnell states that somewhat over 700 herbaceous plants 

 were collected during the summer at about sixty different 

 points on the Jenissci ; of these about 200 are foreign to 

 Sweden. Several families and races, as Gymnospcrmce, 

 Androsacc, Pcdicularis, and .-IncmoneiLre richer in species 

 on the Jenissei than in Scandinavia ; the following races 

 numerously represented in Sweden are sp.aringly met with 

 on the Jenissei : — Hieracium, Campanula, I 'cronica, Tri- 



