52 



SIBERIA IN EUROPE. 



CHAP. V. 



much smaller numbers than those of the snow-bunting. 

 Many of the males were beginning to assume the carmine 

 breast, showing great promise of beauty when the full 

 summer plumage should be attained. We were informed 

 that these birds arrived about the same time as the snow- 

 bunting. On the outskirts of the town we met with a few 

 small parties. of yellow-hammers,* and occasionally heard 

 their familiar song. These birds are probably also migra- 

 tory. They were comparatively rare, and as we never 

 saw any fartlier north, we may assume Ust-Zylma to 

 be about the extreme limit of their summer range. The 

 forests were remarkably silent. Often there was not a 

 bird to be seen for miles. Once or twice we had a distant 

 glimpse of a Siberian jay, a marsh tit, or a bullfinch, 

 but we did not succeed in obtaining a shot. On the whole 

 our first week in Ust-Zylma was not very encouraging 

 from an ornithological point of view. After eight days' 

 work our list of identified birds in the valley of the 

 Petchora stood as follows: — 



former. In winter this species is found 

 at different times throughout the whole 

 of Central and Southern Europe, occa- 

 sionally straying across the Mediter- 

 ranean. Eastwards it wanders as far 

 as Turkestan, Southern Siberia, North 

 China and Japan. On the American 

 continent it winters in South Canada 

 and the northern States. We did not 

 observe ^this species in the valley of 

 the Petchora farther north than lati- 

 tude 68°. 



* The yellow-hammer (Embeiva ci- 

 trinella, Linn.) is a common resident 

 in the British Islands, as in most parts 

 of Central Europe. Northwards it is 

 a summer migrant, and in South Europe 

 and North Africa it is principally 

 secured in winter. The records of its 

 occurrence east of the valley of the Obb 

 appear to be unreliable. In the valley 

 of the Petchora we did not observe 

 it north of latitude 65J°. 



