Widmann — A Preliminary Catalog of the Birds of Missouri. 29 



spring of 1879 and twice in Kansas. (April 2, 1872, at Lawrence, 

 and in Mitchell Co.) 



Being a very common summer resident in several sections of 

 Louisiana it seems probable that roving individuals, following 

 the example of several other species of birds, may straggle up the 

 Mississippi Valley into our state. Students should be on the 

 lookout for them when visiting the Peninsula in summer or 

 early autumn. 



Family Pelecanidae. Pelicans. 



125. Pelecanus erythrorhynchos Gmel. American White 

 Pelican. 



P. americanus. P. trachyrhynchus. P. onocrotalus. 



Geog. Dist. — North America; rare in northeastern states, 

 common in the interior; north to Mackenzie River, lat. 61°. 

 Breeds from Minnesota, Great Salt Lake, Utah and Eagle Lake, 

 Cal., northward. Winters south of United States to Central 

 America. 



In Missouri the White Pelican is a regular and still common 

 transient visitant in April, September and October, occurring in 

 large flocks on the Mississippi and Missouri Rivers, where it finds 

 a safe retreat on the immense sandbars in the middle of these 

 rivers. For feeding purposes it visits also smaller bodies of 

 water, but retires to the large rivers for rest and roost. Small 

 parties are sometimes seen in summer (May, June, July and 

 August) — individuals which either did not get to breeding, or 

 have been disturbed and driven from their nesting grounds. 

 In his Preliminary Report on the Animals of the Mississippi 

 Bottom near Quincy, Mr. H. Garman mentions the presence of a 

 flock of forty Pelicans in August 1888; also troops of Cormorants. 

 This tends to show that these species may wander about before 

 their regular time for migration has come. From the notes of 

 early explorers it is evident that Pelicans were formerly abundant 

 along the lower Missouri River. Under date of April 28, 1833, 

 Max, Prince zu Wied writes : " One hundred or more Pelicans go 

 north in wedge or crescent shape.'* and the next day, April 29, 

 1833, he saw a still larger flock. Audubon often speaks of flocks 

 of Pelicans when he went up the Missouri in April, 1843, and saw 

 some as late as May 9 near the corner of the state. Also on his 

 way back in October, 1843, he mentions great flocks of geese 



