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withstand severe cold. Every year some of the northern observers re- 
port Robins wintering about their stations, and the winter of 188384 
was no exception. One was seen, January 1, in northwestern Indiana; 
another, January 11, at Vermillion, Dak., and finally, at Hastings, 
Minn., 500 miles from his brethren, “one was seen Devember 28, 1883, 
with a flock of Pine Grosbeaks (Pinicola enucleator), apparently at home 
and determined to spend the winter. It was seen repeatedly, and 
actually remained till spring with the same flock of Grosbeaks.” 
The distribution of the Robin in its winter home depends entirely on 
the food supply ; where food is plenty, there the Robin remains, though 
observers a few miles away may not see one all winter. At Manhat- 
tan, Kans., berries are abundant, and during the winter of 1883-’84, as 
in previous years, flocks of five hundred or more individuals were con- 
stantly seen, while observers at stations but a short distance away re- 
ported no Robins from December until February. Manhattan, Kans., 
is the most northern station at which flocks of Robins remained during 
the winter. So far as can be learned, but few wintered in Indian Ter- 
ritory, nor did northern Texas fare much better; but they were reported 
as wintering in immense numbers along 300 miles of the cafion of the 
Nueces River in southwestern Texas. In Concho and Tom Green Coun- 
ties Mr. Lloyd states that they are tolerably common in spring and fall, 
and that a few winter in the river bottoms. They were reported from 
all the Southern States, at some points as abundant, at others as rare. 
In the early spring of 1884, as if disliking winter quarters, the Robins 
pushed north at the first breath of warm weather. Regardless of the 
certainty of being overtaken by cold, they hurried on, and trom Janu- 
ary 31 to February 3 occupied all the country from which they had been 
driven by the low temperature of the first of the year. This movement 
was confined to comparatively few individuals, and while the scouts had 
advanced to latitude 39°, or even a little farther north—single birds 
having been seen at Burlington, Iowa, (lat. 40° 50’) and at Lake Mills, 
Wis. (lat. 43° 06/)—the main body still remained in camp three or four 
hundred miles to the south. Then followed a whole month of waiting, 
during which time adventurous birds pressed northward, only to be 
driven back by snow and ice; nor was the real advance commenced 
until March 9. From that date until they had passed our northern 
boundary their advance was constant and more or less uniform. The 
regular advance of the van appears to have been as follows: From 
March 9 to 15 they spread over Illinois and eastern Nebraska to lati. 
tude 41° 51’; March 16, there was a slight advance in Iowa; March 17 
and 18, no record; March 19 and 20 an advance to latitude 43° in 
Towa, Illinois, and Wisconsin, but not in Nebraska; March 21, a sud- 
den spreading over Wisconsin to latitude 459°. 
By March 24 the rest of the stations in Wisconsin had reported, and 
an equal advance had taken place in Minnesota, so that by this date 
the van was at latitude 45° along the whole line. North of this all the 
