Nov., 1909 
A COLLECTION OF BIRDS FROM FORTY-MILE, CANADA 
203 
hours in gathering collections of natural history and ethnological specimens. These, 
together with others secured at different points in Alaska, have now cotne into the 
possession of the University; and the birds and mammals are cataloged as part of 
this Museum. 
Forty-mile is situated on the Upper Yukon River where the latter is joined by 
the Forty-mile River. It is about twelve miles east of the Alaska-Canadian 
boundary. Mr. Hall has informed me that the birds (markt "40-mile”) were all 
obtained on the Canadian side in the immediate vicinity of the post, that is, within 
four or five miles. In the following list I include only such species as were taken 
on Canadian ground, reserving the Alaskan records for another paper. I believe 
that the simple record of these birds will afford facts of considerable value in the 
matter of definite locality and dates of occurrence. In many of the migrant species 
the specimens of early date, so Mr. Hall tells me, were the first for the season to be 
observed. The numbers employed to denote specimens in the following list are 
those of the bird catalog in this Museum. I have added critical comments where I 
could see that such are warranted. 
Colymbus holboellii (Reinhardt). Holboell Grebe. Adult male (no. 4925), 
June 6, 1899. 
Colymbus auritus Linnaeus. Horned Grebe. Female immature (no. 4875), 
September 20, 1898; male adult (no. 4874), May 20, 1899. 
Gavia immer (Briinnich). Common Loon. Adult female (no. 4927), May 
28, 1899; female immature (no. 4928), September 25, 1900. 
Gavia pacifica (Lawrence). Pacific Loon. Adult female (no. 4883), May 28, 
1899: wing, 289; tarsus, 60; culmen, 50; coloration, as far as I can see, exactly 
like two adults from Alaska. 
Gavia stellata (Pontoppidan) . Red-throated Loon. Adult male (no. 4879), 
June 15, 1899. 
Rissa brevirostris (Bruch). Red-legged Kittiwake. Immature (?) female 
(no. 4909), October 15, 1899: wing, 296; tail, 114; tarsus, 30.3; middle toe with 
claw, 45.5; culmen, 23; bill from nostril, 12.6; depth of bill at base, 9.6. Aside 
from the wings and mantle the bird is pure white, except for a slaty crescent close 
in front of the eye, a slaty auricular spot, a slight gray wash across nape, and a 
transverse area on the hind-neck in which the feathers are blackish-tipt; mantle, 
mouse gray, the outer, middle and lesser wing-coverts narrowly tipt with whitish, 
and secondaries tipt with white to a width of 13 mm or less. Outermost (first) 
primary with shaft and both vanes black, except for a light gray margin on the 
inner vane, which widens nearly across vane towards base and terminates narrowly 
(2 mm wide) 53 mm short of the tip of the feather; this gray area ends distally 2 
mm from the inner edge of the vane, so that the black extends around its end and 
separates it from the actual margin of the vane 21 mm down the vane; second 
primary the same, but inner light gray area broader and extending within 43 mm 
of tip of feather; third primary the same, but gray area ending 39.5 nnn short of 
the tip of the feather; fourth primary the same, but tipt with whitish (l.5 mm), outer 
vane narrowly and outwardly margined with gray towards base, and inner web with 
pale gray area so broad as to nearly touch shaft, and broadly rounded distally 
within 32 mm of tip of feather; fifth primary light gray, with irregularly white tip 
(averaging 6 mm wide), preceded by an irregular black bar (averaging 19 mm 
wide) double-rounded proximallv; sixth primary grayish outwardly, white inward- 
ly and distally, black spot 8 mm long on outer web to within 7 mm of tip of 
