140 BULLETIN 107, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM. 
a circle, frequently alighting in the water and uttering a low, plain- 
tive whistle.” 
Winter—tThe fall migration consists of a general offshore move- 
ment and a gradual southward drift, off the coast, as far south as 
southern California. The ancient murrelet spends the winter on 
the open ocean, northward nearly to the Aleutian and Commander 
Islands, associating with the various species of auklets and other sea 
birds, where an abundant food supply is to be found in the warm 
waters of the Japan Current, drifting eastward across the North 
Pacific Ocean and southward along the coast of North America. 
Prof. Leverett M. Loomis (1896) thus deseribes the behavior of 
this species off the coast, of California in winter: 
About 500 yards from the surf, a belt of drift kelp, extending from the Sea- 
side Laboratory around Point Pinos, had gained an anchorage on the rocky 
bottom. The narrow strip between this breakwater and the beach was the 
favorite resort of ancient murrelets except on the rare days when there was 
a north wind, which invariably drove the bird life of the bay away from the 
exposed south shore. A good many were also found near the surf in the little 
coves in the direction of Monterey and some were seen several miles out from 
the land. In the sheltered places they chiefly frequented food appeared to be 
abundant. They were great divers and swimmers under water, and voracious 
in their pursuit of small fry, occasionally driving the fish to the surface in 
the eagerness of the chase. Often not a murrelet would be in sight for some 
time. Then a pair or a small company (the largest one observed numbered 
nine individuals) would suddenly appear from the depths. Unlike the marbled 
murrelets, they did not generally seek safety in flight when pursued. Neither 
did they dive as soon or remain as long under water when keeping out of the 
way of the boat. If a white cap developed near them they would always 
escape from it by diving. Although over a hundred were taken in the nar- 
row belt near the surf, they were more numerous there toward the last than 
at the outset, new birds apparently coming in to take the places of those that 
had been shot. 
DISTRIBUTION. 
Breeding range.—Coasts and islands of the North Pacific. From 
the Queen Charlotte Islands, southeastern Alaska (St. Lazaria and 
Forrester Islands) westward to Kodiak Island, the Aleutian Islands, 
Commander Islands, Kamtschatka, Kurile Telands, and northern 
Japan. 
Winter range—Southward from the Aleutian and Commander 
Islands to British Columbia (Vancouver Island), Washington 
(Strait of Juan de Fuca and Olympia), Oregon (Netarts Bay), and 
California (San Francisco Bay, Monterey Bay, Santa Barbara 
Islands, and Pacific Beach, San Diego County), and on the Asiatic 
coast to Japan (Hakodadi and Yokohama). 
Spring migration.—The latest date of occurrence in California is 
apparently April 25 (Pacific Beach); at Point Pinos, where the 
bird is common, none were seen later than March 22. They have 
