KUNGL. SV. VET. AKADEMIENS HANDLINGAR. BAND 40. N:0 5. 51 



Of these Nettion and Anthus are endemic as species, and Sterna vittata georgice 

 as subspecies. 



Another group of breeders is exclusively confined to the American quadrant of 

 the subantarctic, resp. antarctic region. To this group belong Pygoscelis antarctica, 

 Phalacrocorax atriceps and Chionis alba. Of these the first and the last are, when 

 on South Georgia, at their northern limit as breeders. Chionis and Phalacrocorax 

 atriceps are fully at horae even in the southernmost inhabitable parts of the ant- 

 arctic region but Pygoscelis antarctica has a more restricted habitat from western 

 Graham land and the South Shetlands to the South Orkneys. 



The remaining lot of birds breeding on South Georgia have a very wide distri- 

 bution and are more or less completely circumpolar. But some of them do not ex- 

 tend further south at all, while others also are found within the true Antarctic re- 

 gion. Of the latter some are also circumpolar within the Antarctic region, while 

 others extend so far south only in the American quadrant, as K. A. Andersson (8) 

 has remarked as well, and otherwise have a wide distribution only in the Subantarc- 

 tic region. 1 The cause of this is, no doubt, that nowhere else subantarctic and ant- 

 arctic lands and islands are situated so near each other. The same has also caused 

 that some truly antarctic birds in this quadrant, but nowhere else, extend northward 

 into the subantarctic region, for instance Pagodroma. 



The non breeding birds may divided in normal visitors and occasional stragg- 

 lers. To the former group belong for instance Priocella glacialoicles, Diomedea melano- 

 phrys and Thalassogeron cul-minatus. All these are circumpolar. 



Thalassoeca antarctica is less often observed, it has a wide antarctic distri- 

 bution. 



The specimens of Eudyptes which were observed by the German Expedition 

 were certainly occasional stragglers, perhaps from the Falklands. 



The avifauna of the South Orkneys has recently become well known through 

 the Scottish Expedition (21) and, as these islands are the nearest land of any im- 

 portance, it is of special interest to compare their ornis with that of South Georgia. 

 The first look will then show that the South Orkneys is much poorer in breeding 

 species. In addition to the endemic birds, the following South Georgian breeders are 

 missing at least as such on the South Orkneys: Aptenodytes patachonica, Garrodia 

 nereis, Majaqueus cequinoctialis, Prion banlcsi, Pelecanoides urinatrix, Diomedea exulans, 

 Phoebetria fuliginosa cornicoides. On the contrary, the South Orkneys possess only two 

 breeding species which are not at home on South Georgia, viz. the true antarctic 

 Pygoscelis adelice and the south-american Sterna hirundinacea which appears to ex- 

 tend even further south. Pygoscelis antarctica, Pagodroma and several other species 

 are, however, much more numerous on the South Orkneys than on South Georgia. 

 Possibly Eudyptes chrysolophus and Thalassoeca antarctica also breed on the South 

 Orkneys. Among the regular visitors of the South Georgia sea Diomedea melanophnjs 

 and Thalassogeron culminatus appear to be missing at the South Orkneys. 



1 Pygoscelig papua, Gatharacta antarctica and Larus dominicanus. 



