320 THEOUGH THE MACKENZIE BASIN 



whicli was duly forwarded to Washington. Hare in northern 

 British Columbia. In his valuable " Catalogue of Cana- 

 dian Birds," Professor Macoun has made no reference to the 

 following Anderson note : " A male bird of this species was 

 shot at Fort Anderson on 25th May, 1865, where it is by 

 far the least abundant of the genus during the spring migra- 

 tion. The Eskimo assured us that it did not breed in Liver- 

 pool Bay, and it may therefore do so, along with the great 

 bulk of the two larger species, on the extensive islands lying 

 to the north and north-east of the American continent." I 

 have always regretted that I was unable, owing to the aban- 

 donment of the post, summer 1866, to carry out my intention 

 of devoting at least two seasons to a personal exploration of 

 the breeding-grounds of this and some other birds which are 

 believed to resort to Liverpool Bay and the " Eskimo Lakes," 

 and thence also to the delta of the Mackenzie River. At 

 Fort Chipewyan, Athabasca, however, Koss's goose is the 

 last to arrive in spring, but is among the first to return in 

 the autumn. At Fort Resolution, Great Slave Lake, Mr. 

 Ross states that it comes second there. 



According to Cassin, this is the " horned wavey " de- 

 scribed by Samuel Hearne, in 1795, as follows: "This 

 species is very scarce at Churchill River, and I believe it is 

 never found at any of the southern settlements ; but about 

 two or three hundred miles to the north-west of Churchill 

 I have seen them in as large flocks as the common wavey 

 or snow goose." Professor Macoun remarks that " noth- 

 ing more was heard of this species until Mr. Robert Kenni- 

 cott and Mr. Bernard R. Ross, of the Hudson's Bay Com- 

 pany, sent specimens taken on Great Slave Lake to the 

 Smithsonian Institution, and Mr. Cassin recognized it as 

 a new species, and named it after Mr. Ross." Mr. Fannin 

 states that it has been taken at the Eraser River, and also on 

 Shuswap Lake, and on Kuper Island, B. C, but he was 

 inclined to think that its occurrence there was rare. The 

 Ottawa Museum holds but one specimen (and no eggs), pro- 

 cured at Fort Churchill, Hudson Bay, by Dr. R. Bell 1 



