462 
LAMELLIROSTRAL SWIMMERS — ANSERES. 
Geese, some remaining to breed about Klamath Lake, and others in the Cascade 
Range, if not farther south. 
Mr. Ridgway mentions it as breeding in the interior, about all the large lakes of 
the Great Basin. Its young were caught in May at Pyramid Lake, and the old birds 
were shot there. It is resident in the Truckee meadows, specimens having been 
procured there in November; but it was not so abundant there at that time as B. 
Hutcliinsi was. Mr. J. A. Allen found it already present in great numbers in the 
valley of Great Salt Lake. 
Dr. Cooper states that he noticed a large number of this species breeding along 
the Missouri, where every day he met with broods, from Fort Leavenworth up to 
Fort Benton. They were said to lay in nests, on trees, probably the deserted nests 
of some other large bird. He also saw two at Spokane River, in Washington Terri- 
tory, Septemher 25, which had passed the summer there. 
Many interesting and striking evidences of the sagacity of this bird are narrated, 
having reference to the manner in which its migrations are managed, and its safety 
provided for on its feeding-grounds. 
In the migrations of these Geese, families assemble in flocks, and many of them 
unite in forming a vast column, each band having its chosen leader. They generally 
continue flying during the night, but occasionally alight and await the day. Before 
doing so the pioneers survey the ground below, and select a spot favorable for food 
and safety. Sentinels are appointed from among the Ganders to sound the alarm, 
should an enemy appear. Mr. Giraud states that he has seen these Geese adopt the 
same precautions when in large flocks in the daytime. The sentinels separate from 
the main body, move about with heads erect, ready to detect the first indications of 
intruders. After an interval these outposts would return to the main body, their 
places being immediately supplied by others. 
The hoarse honk of the Gander is a cry so familiar to the inhabitants, that it is 
impossible for the birds to arrive without their visits becoming known. The practised 
bay-hunter watches their flight, discovers their favorite sanding-place, and, on gaining 
the desired point, puts out his decoys, sinks a box in the sand, and there conceals 
himself ; and as the Geese approach he carefully prepares for their reception. When 
wounded this bird is able to sink itself in the water, leaving only its bill above the 
surface, and can remain in that situation for a considerable time. During storms it 
flies low ; and also when the weather is very foggy it becomes confused, and alights 
on the ground. Wild Geese remain on Long Island in the fall until the bays are 
frozen, and return on the disappearance of the ice in the spring ; but at that season 
their stay is short. Early in -April they collect in large flocks, and move off almost 
simultaneously. Their food consists of sedge roots, marine plants, berries, and herb- 
age of various kinds. In the winter they are common on the lakes in the neighbor- 
hood of the Lower Mississippi. There — as Mr. Giraud was informed — a few 
stragglers are wont to remain all summer. The Wild Geese are said to arrive in the 
waters of Chesapeake Bay about the last of October, when they immediately dis- 
tribute themselves over the entire bay, rarely leaving its shores for the smaller 
streams, although often retiring to the smaller inlets to roost, or to feed, at night. 
According to Mr. Lewis this bird sometimes makes its first appearance in the 
Delaware and in the Chesapeake in October, this early arrival being considered a 
certain prognostic of a long and hard winter. On return of the Wild Goose to the 
north it passes through the Eastern States in April — earlier or later, according to the 
weather. When in the southern waters it feeds on the leaves, blades, and seeds of 
maritime plants, and the roots of sedges. 
