222 U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 217 



Siberia are given as the range of pacifiGus in the A.O.U. Check-list 

 (1957) , which does not extend ruhescens west of arctic Yukon. Since 

 Ahlasuruk Eiver is about 200 miles from the western arctic coast of 

 Alaska, rubescens and not paciflcus extends across arctic Alaska at 

 least in the interior. 



As this race of pipits winters east of Texas their migratory flight 

 probably passes east and west across most of Yukon (Eand, 1946). 

 Since they are not recorded from British Columbia (Munro and 

 Cowan, 194:7) they probably travel the Mackenzie Valley and the 

 central flyway. 



Family BOMB YCILLIDAE: Waxwings 



Bombycilla garrula pallidiceps Reichenow 



3 males Apr. 18-Jimel weight 49.6, 50.3, fat (2), medium fat 



average 54.0 g. (1) 



4 females Apr. 18-Jmie 29 weight 59.1-58.7 g. fat (4) 



A flock of ten Bohemian waxwings was seen on April 10 in their 

 characteristically erect positions on the tops of some birches and 

 poplars. Later they were frequently heard and seen in small flocks 

 flying, feeding, or resting in the tops of the birches and poplars. 

 Six of the seven specimens taken were fat. The testes of the last male 

 specimen, taken on June 1 were enlarged but perhaps not to breeding 

 size, and on June 29 a female specimen had a brood patch. These 

 dates bracket egg laying. 



There was no apparent change in the numbers of waxwings present, 

 but flocks were not remarked after June 1. 



The Indians spoke of waxwings as winter birds near Old Crow, 

 where they are called khut tsa T/ah^ and at Kobuk they are considered 

 to be winter birds by the Eskimos. Eand (1946) called the waxwings 

 migratory in Yukon and we have not found reports of them in arctic 

 forests earlier than April or later than October 15. At these seasons 

 winter conditions prevail. The birds of several species in the arctic 

 forests are migratory in the sense that in winter flocks concentrate 

 and move for some distance in search of favorable feeding places. 

 If they are true forest-dwelling birds the trend of their concentration 

 and movement in the northern margin of forest could only take them 

 southward. It has also been remarked however that in central arctic 

 Alaska some chickadees and pine grosbeaks move north of the forest 

 on to the tundra in winter. We have not now the evidence which 

 would show in these wanderings the precision of course that charac- 

 terizes the great spring migrations. The distinction of the marked 

 and long migrations is not only their distance, but the regularity 



