390 THE FUE SEALS OF THE PEIBILOF ISLANDS. 



them by the neck, very few trying to fly and all scrambling in all haste over the rough 

 slippery rocks in the utmost confusion. Their habits are doubtless the same as the 

 more common arra. The downy young of californica would seem to differ from arra 

 in the dry skin by being of a paler color, and by having the upper edge of the white 

 of the under parts blending into the dark neck color, instead of being bluntly and 

 sharply separated, as iu arra. The first feathering to appear on the young bird is on 

 the wings and scapulars, along the sides of the breast and across the lower neck. 

 Soon the down begins to drop oft' between the nostrils and the eyes and around the 

 mouth and the base of the lower mandible, and as the birds get older the new 

 feathering extends across the back, up the sides of the neck, and all over the under 

 parts up to the bill. At the same time the feathering extends around the eyes and 

 bill and running well back of the eyes, so that the only remains of the downy plumage 

 is on the top of the head, extending dowa the back of the neck almost to the scapulars, 

 scattering down the back, and extensive about the rump, where it is still attached to 

 the tips of the new feathering beneath. I see no difference between the sexes. They 

 occur about the islands all winter apparently, as a specimen is in the Museum 

 collection. This is an immature bird, and has the white of the under parts meeting 

 across the back of the neck. No. 118684, ad. 5 , U.S.N.M., August 7, 1890, Walrus 

 Island, W. P.; wing, 8.00; culmen, 1.66; tarsus, 1.52. No. 68332, January 29,1874, 

 Pribilof Islands, George li. Adams. 



28. Uria lomvia arra (Pall.). Pallas's Murre. "Arrie.'' 



Uria arra, Dall and Bann., Trans. Chic. Ac. Sci. 1869, 309. 



Lomvia arra, Coues, in Elliott's Ept. Aff. Alaska, 1873; Reprint, 1875, 211; Key, 1890, 817. — 



Elliott, Mon. Seal Ids. 1882, 135. 

 Uria lomvia arra, Nelson, Bds. Alaska, 1887, 45. — Townsend, Cruise, Corwin, 1887, 98. — A. O. 



U. Ch. List, 1895, 12.— Eidgeway, Man. 1896, 18. 

 Uria lomvia. Grant, Cat. B. Br., Mus. 1898, 577 (part). 



The interesting account of this bird given by Mr. Elliott in his Monograph is as 

 true to-day as when written. At anchor off the village of St. George at the end of 

 May and early in June one can view one of the most marvelous ornithological exhibi- 

 tions of the world. Thousands of the Least Auklet are close about us, in the water 

 or flying in every direction in indescribable confusion; but the more stately Murres 

 sweep by in numerous and somewhat regular platoons, as if passing inspection. These 

 platoons consist of perhaps from fifty to five hundred individuals, and while never 

 forming a straight line seem to be continually trying to do so. The central birds are 

 nearly always in advance, the whole usually forming a very wide ^^''~~~--^^ and again 

 a y^ \; sometimes a double curve or a combination of flat curves and angles, 

 , continually changing, but the approach to a straight line is always the dominant 

 feature. Comparatively few pass between us and the shore; but on the sea side of the 

 vessel their number is legion. As far as the eye can see file upon file are moving, 



in an apparently endless succession and nearly always in the same direction 



into the wind. It is no exaggeration to say that three platoons pass our line of sight 

 every second, often many more; these will average at least a hundred eath; thus we 

 have 18,000 birds passing every minute, or' 1,080,000 in an hour. But we only see the 

 edge, not the center, of the parade and from one point only, and many are flying over 

 the land or are perched on the cliffs.' This parade continues until late in the morn- 



' I have endeavored to estimate the total number of individual birds of all species occurring on 

 the Pribilofs during a year. My figures reach 9,000,0()0, which I can not think is an exaggeration. 



