CATALOGUE OF CANADIAN BIRDS. 1 I 7 



Rhoads and Brooks both record seeing this bird in numbers near 

 150-niile House, Cariboo district during the summer, and believe 

 that it breeds there, though neither of them found a nest or saw 

 young. 



166. Surf Scoter. Sea Coot. 



Oidemia prespicillata (Linn.) Steph. 1824. 



A few specimens obtained from the Danish settlements in Green- 

 land. {Arct. Man.) Breeding sparingly along the coast of Labrador. 

 (Turner.) Abundant on the Labrador coast. They came down 

 the coast late in August and were soon very numerous on the fiords. 

 (Bigelow.) Common along the coast of Newfoundland, especially 

 during the breeding season. (Reeks.) Migrant along the coast of 

 Nova Scotia and New Brunswick ; also in the Gulf and River St. 

 Lawrence. It is a rare migrant near Ottawa, Ont., but more com- 

 mon on Lake Ontario. Fleming records a young bird taken at Beau- 

 maris, Muskoka district, Ont., by Mr. Taverner. 



Rare in Hudson strait, but quite common from Cape Jones to 

 Richmond gulf in Hudson bay, June 1896; very abundant on the 

 west coast of James bay in July and August, 1904. (Spreadborough.) 

 Rather common in Hudson bay, south of Cape Eskimo. One taken 

 on Churchill river near Fort Churchill, another near Pine lake and 

 several were seen at Robinson portage, Keewatin. (Preble.) This 

 is a common species on the Arctic coast, and breeds abundantly 

 both there and on the "Barrens" along the Anderson river, near 

 Fort Anderson. (Macfarlane.) Saw a few on Lesser Slave lake, 

 Atha., in 1903. (Spreadborough.) 



Abundant everywhere on the coast waters of British Columbia. 

 (Fannin.) Remains on Lake Okanagan throughout the winter. 

 Seen throughout the summer in Cariboo district, but does not breed. 

 (Brooks.) Common about Burrard inlet during the latter part of 

 April, 1889. (Streator.) Saw ten on the Arrow lakes, B.C., May 

 i8th, 1902. Very abundant at Douglas, B,C., April and May, 1906. 

 (Spreadborough.) 



Nelson and Turner both report this as a very common duck in 

 Alaska, but seem to know little of its breeding habits. Its great 

 breeding grounds are very likely the "tundra" bordering the arctic 

 coast southwest of Point Barrow. Bishop saw many specimens in 



