MISCELLANEOUS NOTES. 



On the Appearance of the Grey Phalarope in Uraga Channel. 



— According to Seebohm the Grey Phalarope {P.fulicarius) is a winter visitor 

 to the Kurile Islands " but it hay not yet been recorded from Japan proper." 



On the 27th Nov. '94 Mr. J. C. Haitland of Yokohama obtained one speci- 

 men in that neighborhood, and I have no record of any other examples taken 

 in Japan proper until the occurrence referred to below. 



On the 8th of this month (April) the Yacht " Golden H.nd" left Uraga for 

 Ukishima to see if possibly the Swifts (C. pacifirus) had arrived at their breeding 

 place there. However we did not see any, and as a hard and cold north wind 

 was blowing we made for Misaki. On the way we saw several flocks of small 

 birds which we took to be Turnstones (.S'. in/erprex). 



Next day we sailed down to the Doketsuba oli* Sunosaki, and we found the 

 sea swarming with these same small birds, which on shooting we found to be 

 Grey Phalaropes. Some were white on the lower parts, others in their breeding 

 plumage or partly so. The numbers seen can only be described as myi-iads. 

 They were in Hocks of four or five to a couple of hundred in every direction ei- 

 ther flying about or sitting on the surface of the water busily feeding. The 

 weather was cloudy and many other birds were about. Albatross, Shearwater, 

 Gaunet, Auks, Cormorants, and Divers (C. ardicus f ) — these latter were particu- 

 larly numerous. 



On the night of the !)th it rained heavily, and next morning a strong south- 

 erly gale came up. By noon the wind decreased somewhat and at 2 o'clock 

 " Gold Hind " left Misaki for Yokohama. When rounding Tsurugisaki a tre- 

 mendous sea was running but the Phalaropes were still about in smaller numbers. 

 They were sitting on the sea but had to fly up whenever a huge comber threaten- 

 ed to come tumbling down on them. Inside Tokyo Bay we found it calm and 

 near Futsusaki there were a great many more of these Phalaropes. 



I may add that the Misaki fisherman Kumakichi was with us and he said 

 he had never seen these birds before. As fishermen arc so accustomed to watch 

 the birds for indications as to the whereabouts of the fish it is not likely that he 

 would have failed to notice the Phalarope on a previous occasion, which tends to 

 show that the present occurrence is exceptional. 



Alan Owston. 



