490 GEOLOGICAL SURVEY OF CANADA. 



fledged young and moulting adults were found in the latter part 

 of July. {Gtiitfiell.) . This species is very common, especially 

 along the coast of Behring Sea, and of all the birds that frequent 

 bushes this is the most common to the north. {Nelson.) This 

 species arrives at St. Michael and remains about two and one- 

 half months. It breeds in the alder thickets that skirt the small 

 lakes and low grounds. It is quite common. {Turner.) One speci- 

 men taken at Homer, Kenai Peninsula, Alaska, September 8th, 

 1 90 1. {Chapman) 



Breeding Notes. — In the Kowak delta on the 14th and 15th 

 of June I took a set of five and one of six slightly incubated eggs, 

 respectively. The two nests were similarly placed in the tops of 

 clumps of grass at the edge of a marsh about six inches above the 

 water. The nest proper consists of closely-matted broad dry 

 grass- blades and stems, while the lining is entirely of white 

 ptarmigan feathers, though not one shows above the rim. The 

 deeply cup-shaped cavity is thus pure white, though when the bird 

 was sitting she entirely concealed it. The internal diameter of 

 the nest is 2'00, depth, I'go,; external diameter, 4'8o, depth, 

 2'6o. The ground colour of the egg is very pale blue. The 

 set of six is quite uniformly and thickly spotted with liver- 

 brown and vinaceous tints. One egg of the set of five is like 

 them, but the others are wreathed at the large ends with confluent 

 markings of the same colours, while the rest of the surface is very 

 finely dotted and blurred with a pale brown tint; so as to nearly 

 obscure the ground colour. The eleven eggs average '74 x •57. 

 {Joseph Grinnell.) I have several sets of eggs from the Mackenzie 

 delta ; a nest and five eggs was found by Rev. C.E. Whittaker on 

 June 18th, 1900 at Peel River ; another nest with five eggs was 

 found at the foothills of the Black Mountains by Mr. Stringer on 

 June 13th, 1899; another clutch of four eggs was found, west side 

 of Mackenzie delta by Mr. Stringer on June 8th, 1899 ; the nests 

 are made of dried grass warmly lined with feathers and were built 

 on mossy knolls on the ground. {W. Raine.) 



museum specimens. 



Fifteen ; five taken at Indian Head, Assa., in April, 1892, and 

 September, 1891 ; four at Medicine Hat, Assa., in April, 1894 ; 

 four at Revelstoke, B.C., in April, 1890, and two at Pentictoui 

 B.C., April 9th, 1903 ; all by Mr. Spreadborough. 



