34 Nelson on some Birds o] St. Michael's, Alaska. 
Puffins (M. cornimlata), but they were equally curious. On enter- 
ing a small cove, several males of the Surf Duck ( CEdemia perspicil- 
lata ) in full breeding plumage arose clumsily and with shrill whis- 
tling wings moved out to sea. 
From some great basaltic boulders, on the seaward face of the 
island, which is itself a rock of the same material, half a mile long by 
a few hundred yards wide, there arose a large flock of Pacific Kitti- 
wakes ( Larus tridactylus kotzebuei ) ; scattering here and there, some 
alighted a short distance off in the water, others circled slowly 
overhead, while a few left at once for safer resting-places. Many 
of these Gulls were young, as could be plainly seen by the large 
dark patch on the back of the neck. Several were soon stowed 
away in the kyak. Now landing, I carried the boat up a few steps, 
and started to investigate the Mormon nurseries. Concealing my- 
self in a convenient nook, but a short time elapsed before the old 
birds began returning, but almost instantly disappeared into their 
holes, to be greeted by low growling and snuffling noises, which one 
could easily imagine to be an animated curtain lecture by Mrs. Mor- 
mon. All the nests proved to be at the bottom of long, winding 
holes dug into the narrow, dirt-filled crevices with which the rocks 
abounded, thus rendering any attempt to reach the nests futile. 
The eggs had but recently been hatched, as could be ascertained 
by the thin, metallic piping of the young, easily heard when the 
ear was placed close to the entrance. 
While I was scrambling about among the rocks, several Ravens 
were circling high overhead, uttering hoarse, croaking cries. The 
summit of the island is covered with a rank growth of grass and 
other herbage in which Budytes Jlava is more abundant than I have 
seen it elsewhere. As I reached this part of the island several of 
these little wanderers came flying about my head, in long, swinging 
curves, uttering a sharp, metallic, clinking note, crossing and re- 
crossing each other’s paths heedless of danger, until several of their 
number were reposing in their ornithological winding-sheets of 
paper in my collecting basket. The others suddenly became shy, 
and scattered about on the small hillocks, keeping cautiously out 
of range as I advanced until near the opposite side of the island, 
when they circled back to their former positions. As I drew near 
one of the bluffs a Pigeon Hawk (Falco columbarius) darted out 
almost at my feet, and was cleanly missed (fault of the gun, of 
course !). In a small patch of scrubby alders (Aimes viridis), on 
