[1883. General Notes. 245 



During the foil migration Mr. Comeau secured specimens of two 

 additional species new to the locality. They are : 



155. Tryngites rufescens. — August 28. 



156. Tringa alpina americana. — Angust 28. 



In September, 1S82, Mr. Comeau shot another specimen of the Caro- 

 lina Dove (^Zenaidura carolinensis). — C. Hart Merriam, M. D., Locust 

 Grove, N. T. 



The Movements of certain Winter Birds. — From a letter lately 

 written me by Mr. Manly Hardy, I make the following interesting ex- 

 tracts : "I see in the 'Canadian Sportsman' an article on the migration 

 of Owls which agrees nearly with my own observations, and I would like 

 to have the question presented to the readers of the Bulletin .... 'why 

 do Owls, Grosbeaks, Crossbills and some other northern birds come 

 south in winter.'" 



'•The article referred to states that Snowy and other migratory Owls 

 are most numerous thei-e [Canada.?] in December and January. By 

 reference to a list of dates of capture of a large number of Snowy Owls, 

 I find that most of them have been taken from November 15 to December 

 10, and very few later than that date. With Hawk Owls it is the same. 

 Grosbeaks, in winter when they are plenty, come late in November, and 

 are nearly all gone by December 15, though a few remain all winter. 

 Now why do these birds come here at all 1 I can say almost positively 

 that the two reasons usually given, viz., lack of food and extreme cold — 

 are not the real reasons. The Owls are invariably fat when they arrive 

 and cannot have lacked for food farther north. The Grosbeaks and 

 Crossbills, also, are very fat, and do not need the berries which some 

 persons think they depend upon, for both can live independently on the 

 seeds of the pine and spruce. If there were not a berry in ten years they 

 would not suffer. Moreover, the idea that any of these birds feel the cold 

 is not entitled to a moment's consideration. The Snowy Owl, for instance, 

 can bear as much cold as a Polar Bear. Furthermore, if either of these 

 reasons were the true one, all these species would be likely to come the 

 same winter, an event which does not usually happen." 



The question thus raised by Mr. Hardy is an interesting one. As he 

 maintains, the explanations which have been given to account for the 

 movements of these birds do not seem to be entirely satisfactory. Never- 

 theless I cannot think that they are erroneous. Bii-ds, like many other 

 beings, are fond of variety. The fact that a Grosbeak or Crossbill can 

 sustain life on the seeds of a certain tree does not necessarily prove that 

 it may not undertake long journeys in search of tid-bits. Granting, also, 

 that it can endure an Arctic winter, it does not follow that it may not 

 enjoy a few months' relaxation in a warmer clime. The truth of the mat- 

 ter probably is, that when their breeding season is over these birds habitu- 

 ally wander over vast extents of country. If the winter happens to be 

 severe in the north they find a gradual improvement in conditions south- 

 ward, and naturally, taking this direction, push on until a land of plenty 



