180 THE CONDOR Vol. XX 



The next day, Friday the 29th, our location was shifted to the fishing 

 grounds opposite Vancouver Island. Here a pair of Common Tern (Sterna hi- 

 runclo) and also a pair of Tufted Puffin were collected. The Terns were a 

 pleasant surprise, appearing suddenly while the captain and myself were talking 

 on the front deck. After the first bird was shot the other turned around and 

 came back, making it possible to collect this one also. The Black-footed Alba- 

 tross was very common on this date, and in fact until we left two days later. A 

 few Cassin Auklets (Ptychoramphus aleuticus) were seen here. They were all 

 in pairs and very tame, but were seen at a time when it was impossible to col- 

 lect them. 



On Saturday I woke up to find the captain laughing at me, as he had just 

 shot two Skuas and an albatross and the shots had not awakened me. I admitted 

 the joke but took the first dory and hastened to get the birds. Before I could 

 return the captain had another Black-footed Albatross dead in the water. Al- 

 though this bird was shot at very close range it was made into a good specimen. 

 While retrieving these birds I got so close to an albatross that I raised the oar to 

 see if I could collect him in this manner, but before the fatal blow could descend 

 the bird lazily arose and flew about twenty-five yards, where he sat, wondering 

 what kind of tactics these were. That afternoon three Fork-tailed Petrels (Occ- 

 anoelroma fur cat a) were collected. The albatrosses were so plentiful and tame 

 here that in the afternoon I made a few attempts to photograph them. 



On Sunday I went out in a dory while the fishermen pulled in their gear. 

 The albatrosses did not seem to have any fear of the dory, as they often came to 

 within ten or fifteen feet of me, sitting in the stern. Here I got my best picture 

 (see fig. 34) of them as they followed the dory to get the fish which the fisher- 

 men would leave floating. Occasionally two birds would claim the same fish and 

 then there would be a tug-of-war, the victorious bird swimming to one side to 

 eat it, while the other would follow the dory, hoping that the next fish would be 

 his. The flight of the albatross, as I observed it, was very low, mostly sailing; 

 indeed, I can think of no instance where I saw them over fifty feet above the 

 water. Occasionally, while sailing, one would drag the very tip end of a wing 

 through the crest of a wave without seeming to affect his balance. Sometimes a 

 bird would fly so low in the trough of a wave that it would be lost from sight 

 for an instant. 



On Monday, July 2, running out of bait, we started for Tacoma, arriving 

 there on the afternoon of July 3. For the identification of both the Pink-footed 

 Shearwater and the Skua I am indebted to Mr. H. S. Swarth of the Museum of 

 Vertebrate Zoology, who kindly determined them for me. The others, about 

 which there can be no doubt, were identified by Mr. J. H. Bowles, of Tacoma, 

 and Mr. D. E. Brown, of Seattle. The skins taken on this trip are mostly in the 

 collections of Mr. Brown and myself. 



Tacoma, Washington, February 28, 1918. 



