204 ALASKA. 



As Professor Brandt showed, shortly after the publication of 

 our Monograph, the Sagmatorhina lathami of Bonaparte (—- S. 

 labradoria, Cass.) is merely the young of this species, at an age 

 before the bill has attained its final shape and coloring. Of 

 this fact we became ourselves aware about the same time, from 

 examination of various specimens in the Smithsonian. 



The genus, of course, falls, as well as the species. In our 

 Monograph we were so far wrong as to assign to it a second 

 supposed species, the Ccrorliina siicldeyi of Oassin, which is the 

 young of Geratorhina moiiocerata. 



"Gomes to the islands at the same time as F. corniculata, 

 and resembles the JEjtatlcie in its habits generally. It lays a 

 single large white egg, of a rounded-oval shape. I was never 

 able to see a newly-batched chick, owing to the retired and in- 

 accessible nature of the breeding-places. Could Walrus Island 

 be visited frequently during the season, interesting observations 

 might be made there, for the nests are more easy of access. 

 The young tawpawkie, six weeks old, resembles the parents 

 exactly, only the bill is lighter colored, and the plumes on the 

 head are incipient. This is the only place where the birds can 

 be daily seen and watched with satisfactory results. I took 

 eggs from over thirty nests in July. The natives say it is very 

 quarrelsome when mating, its cries sounding like the growling 

 of a bear as they issue from far down under the rocks that 

 cover its nest." 



The egg is much thicker and more capacious than that of 

 F. corniculata, though no longer. The shell is rough, dead- 

 white, and, besides the frequent discolorations, shows in several 

 specimens very pale, obsolete shell-markings of purplish gray. 

 Several specimens measure as follows: 2.85 x 1.93 j 2.80 x 

 1.92 ; 2.75 x 2.00 ; 2.65 x 1.95. 



•C21. Plialeris psittacuSa, (Esch.) TE:sni.—Parroquet Auk. "Baillie 



Brushkie." 

 Alca psiitacula, Pall. Spic. Zool., fasc. v, 13, pi. 2, pi. 5, f. 4, 5^ 6, 



(1760.) 

 Lunda paiitacula, Pall. Zoog. Eosso-As., ii, 366, pi. 84, (1811.) 

 Phaleris psittacala, Temm. Man. Oi'u., i, 112, (18-20.)— CouES. Key 



N. A. Birds, 342, fig. 222, (1872.) 

 Ombria psittacitla, EscnscH. Zool. Atlas, iv, 3, pi. 17, (1831.) — 



Brandt. Bull. Sc. Acad. St. Petersb., ii, 348, (1837.)— Id. Ibid., vii, 



237, (1869.)— Cass. B. N. A., 410, (1858.)-Elliot. B. N. A., pt. i, 



pi. 70. 

 Simorhpichus psittaculus, Schleg. Mus. Pays-Bas, ix, 24, (1867.) — 



CouES. Proc. Phila. Acad., (1868.) 



