388 



NORTH AMERICAN FAUNA. 



[NO. 2i. 



August 31. I found it common on the Athabaska near La Biche 

 Eiver on the morning of September 1, and between Athabaska Land- - 

 ing and Edmonton September 2 and 4. 



King observed the flicker at Fort Reliance. Great Slave Lake, May 

 2, 1834, noting a common feeding habit as f oUoays : "At that time its 

 crop was full of ants, collected from the loose bark and stems of de- 

 cayed pines." He saw it also at Fort Eesolution on May 24 of the 

 next year." Eichardson noted the bird on Bear Lake Eiver in the 

 summer of 1848.^ Eoss recorded it as common in the Mackenzie Eiver 

 region north to Peel Eiver, and as having been collected at Fort 

 Simpson.^ MacFarlane considered it by no means scarce in the val- 

 ley of the Anderson.'^ Li a letter to Baircl he mentions a nest which 

 contained eleven eggs, found near Fort Anderson [on June 16, 1863]. 

 Baird, Brewer, and Eidgway state that it was found breeding at 

 Fort Eesolution, Fort Eae, Fort Simpson, and Fort Anderson;^ in 

 addition to specimens from these localities, the bird catalogue of the 

 National Museum shows that skins were received from Big Lsland, 

 Fort Halkett, Fort ^^'orman. Fort Good Hope, and Peel Eiver. Eggs 

 were collected at Lesser SlaA^e Lake by Strachan Jones in 1868. 



In 1896 J. Alden Loring found a pair nesting at ^AHiitemud, on 

 McLeod Eiver, 135 miles directly west of Edmonton, early in June; 

 reported it breeding, but not common, 15 miles south of Henr^^ House. 

 Jul}^ 3 to 21 ; and found it common on the trail between Jasper House 

 and Smoky Eiver in August and September. In a male taken b}^ him 

 at Banff, Alberta, August 29, 1894. the j^ellow of wings and tail is 

 very deep, and a few red feathers border the black cheek patches, in- 

 dicating an approach toward C. c. collaris. 



Colaptes cafer collaris (Vigors). Eed-shaftecl Flicker. 



This form occurs in western x\.lberta, extending northward for 

 an undetermined distance, and occurring together with C. liiteiis in 

 migration, and in the breeding season, over the western portion of this 

 area, where it gradually replaces the eastern form. 



In 1901 this bird was common about Eclmonton, and during the 

 first two or three days of our journey to Athabaska Landing, April 

 29 to May 5, but the relative proportion of flickers of this form 

 decreased rapidh^, and during the last day we saw none, nor did 

 we note it after leaving Athabaska Landing. While traveling over 

 the same ground in 1903 we saw none, owing jDrobably to the late 

 date. 



« Narrative Journey to Arctic Ocean, II, p. 200, 1836. 

 ^Arctic Searching Expedition, I, p. 202, 1851. 

 cNat. Hist. Rev., II (second ser.), p. 278, 1862. 

 ^Proc. r. S. Nat. Mus., XIV, p. 438, 1891. 

 e Hist. N. A. Birds, Land Birds, II, p. 576, 1874. 



