EASTERN SEA BSANT 241 



Because of its habit of occasionally cutting across low sandspits 

 to avoid a long detour in its flight, most of the hunting has been done 

 from blinds situated beneath such a line of flight. On Tomales Bay 

 hunters have sailed down on flocks with "blind-boats," when the 

 birds were at rest during a fog, their whereabouts being disclosed by 

 their "gabbling" noises. 



The Black Sea Brant has not been sold on the markets to any 

 extent for a good many years. About twenty years ago consignments 

 were shipped to San Francisco from Humboldt Bay and the birds sold 

 for as little as 25 cents each. Even the high price that the bird would 

 bring at the present time does not attract it to the market because of 

 the difficulty now attached to obtaining it. 



There has been a marked decrease in the number of Black Brant 

 visiting the coast of California in the last twenty-five years. They 

 have apparently been driven away entirely from San Diego Bay and 

 most of the other bays south of San Francisco. California is unique 

 in the possession of this bird during the winter season so that the 

 survival of the species depends almost entirely on the amount of 

 destruction accorded it while it is within the state. Its extreme wari- 

 ness together with its attachment to the open ocean has always been, 

 and will continue to be, its chief protection, but we should supplement 

 this with adequate legislation properly enforced. 



Eastern Sea Brant 



Branta hernicla glaucogastra (Brehm) 



Desceiption — Adults, both sexes: Head, neck, whole breast and forepart of 

 body entirely circled by solid black except for restricted areas of white 

 oblique lines on each side of neck in a collar-like arrangement which, however, 

 is broadly interrupted both in front and behind; bill black; iris "brown" 

 (Sanf ord. Bishop and Van Dyke, 1903, p. 244) ; back brown, abruptly defined 

 in front, each feather tipped with lighter brown; sides of rump and upper 

 tail coverts pure white; tail black; outer surface of closed wing like back; 

 flight feathers black; under surface of wing and axillars brown; under surface 

 of body ashy brown, sharply contrasted with black of fore-breast, and paling 

 gradually behind into pure white of belly and under tail coverts; feathers of 

 sides and flanks broadly tipped with white; legs and feet black. Male: 

 total length 26.31 inches (667 mm.); folded wing 13.37 (339); bill along 

 culmen 1.36 (34.6); tarsus 2.37 (60.2) (one specimen from California). Juvenile 

 plumage: Like adults but with "... wing-coverts and secondaries broadly 

 tipped with pure white, forming very conspicuous bars. Lower parts paler 

 and more uniform; white on middle of the neck reduced to small specks" 

 (Baird, Brewer and Eidgway, 1884, I, p. 468). Natal plumage: Not known to us. 



Marks tor field identification — Similar to those for the Black Sea Brant 

 (which see). Distinguished from Black Sea Brant by much lighter color of 

 under surface, more abrupt line of contrast between black of chest and light 



