In the belief that the 10,000 square miles of the Mackenzie Delta consti- 
tute a key region in which to mark trends of waterfowl abundarce, and in 
order that more complete data might be obtained on the ecologic conditions 
affecting the birds, John J. Lynch, a biologist of the Section of Food 
Habits Research, was detailed to accompany lr. Gillham. 
It was decided to have the investigators on the ground before nesting 
actually took place. To make the trip by steamer on the Mackenzie River 
would necessitate a start later in the season and would require almost a 
month to make the 2,000 miles from Edmonton, Alberta, across Lake 
Athabaska, Great Slave Lake, and down the Mackenzie to the Eskimo village 
of Aklavik. The biologists accordingly started on May 12 and proceeded 
to Seattle where they boarded a steamer for Seward, Alaska. Continuing 
by rail and stage they arrived at Circle City where they loaded their 
equipment into a folding boat and, with an outboard motor, made the run 
down the Yukon River to Fort Yukon, where they entered the Porcupine 
River. This stream was navigated into Yukon Territory and, by way of the 
Old Crow River, the boat trip ended at the Indian village of Old Crow. 
Arrangenents had been made with Canadian Airways to send a plane to pick 
up the party and equipment at this point. This arrived after a few days 
wait and on June 22 Aklavik was reached where, with the folding boat re- 
assembled and an Eskimo to act as interpreter, the trip was continued 
to the Arctic coast, 
A permanent camp was established on an unnamed island in the Mackenzie 
Delta and as Mr. Gillham had camped there in previous seasons, Mr. Lynch 
promptly christened it "Gillham Island." In commenting on this, Mr. 
Gillham stated that he could see little honor in having named for him "a 
md flat in the ever changing Mackenzie Delta." They proceeded, however, 
to name three adjacent islands, "Gabrielson," "Henderson," and "Bell" 
islands, in honor of the Director and Assistant Director of the Service, 
and the Chief of the Wildlife Research Division, while the chiefs of the 
Sections of Food Habits Research and Distribution and Migration of Birds 
found their names had been attached to "Cottam Lake" and "Lincoln Lake" 
on Gillham Island. On this group of islands 960 nests of mow geese and 
black brants were observed. 
A late season prolonged the stay at this camp and made it necessary 
to ration food supplies, but the added time enabled Mr. Lynch to work out 
all of the plants that are utilized by waterfowl. 
The entire nesting schedule «in these high latitudes is remarkably 
uniform and within four or five days of the hatching of the first eggs, 
the young are all out and ready to accompany their parents away from the 
nesting grounds. 
Following work in this section, the eastern portion of the Delta was 
explored to the north end of Richards Island. 
Because of somewhat disrupted flying schedules it was necessary to 
leave Aklavik on August 2, the party arriving at Fort Chipewyan, Alberta, 
8 
