31 
adventitious character and must be allowed for in judging the colours 
of these birds. Mr. F. H. Kennard had such feathers from specimens of 
minima chemically examined, with the result that a strong ferrous reaction 
was obtained and the more red there was on the feathers the more iron 
was revealed. The feathers after treatment showed little of the original red. 
There is probably not a shade of rufous natural to any Branta canadensis. 
Young geese, birds of the year, and until at least a year old, can be 
distinguished by the type of featlieration and pattern of the breast. The 
breast feathers in the juvenile are soft and narrow and the massed colouring 
is broad and even. In the adult the feathers are stiff er, broad and square- 
cut. across the tip with paler edges, producing soft, wave-marked cross- 
barring. Juveniles, particularly in the dark-breasted western forms, have 
whiter breasts than adults but the character is variable and all do not 
show it to the same degree. Some juvenile occidentalis or minima may be 
nearly as light as occasional representatives of the pale-breasted eastern 
forms, whereas others may be quite dark. It is probably due to these 
light juveniles that the darkness of minima and occidentalis has not been 
generally recognized as a determinative racial character. Probably light 
and dark-breasted individuals can be found that are not explained by 
this age sequence, but they are not common and can be referred either 
to intergradation between adjoining races or to straight hybrids, depending 
upon the view taken as to whether the distinction between the parents 
is specific or subspecific. 
With these premises established, the material under review divides into 
the following consistently distinct groups, each with well-defined ranges. 
I. A large, light-breasted form breeding across the continent. Undoubtedly B.c. canadensis. 
II. A large, dark-breasted form breeding on Queen Charlotte islands and probably ad- 
joining localities in Alaska; evidently B.c. occidentalis. 
III. A medium-sized, light-breasted form breeding in the northwest. The bird hitherto 
generally called B.c. hutchinsi. 
IV. A small, dark-breasted form said to breed along the east coast of Bering sea, B.c. minima. 
V. A small, light-breasted form breeding in the eastern Arctics. A hitherto unrecognized 
race. 
Branta canadensis canadensis (Linnaeus) 
The Honker or Typical Canada Goose 
(These birds are either definite breeding specimens or were taken in close association with breeding birds.) 
Museum 
number 
— 
Sex 
Age 
Mid 
toe 
and 
claw 
Tar- 
sus 
Mid 
toe 
into 
tarsus 
Cul- 
men 
Depth 
of 
bill 
Depth 
into 
ad- 
men 
Wing 
Wt. 
Mm, 
Mm. 
Mm, 
Mm. 
Mm. 
Mm. 
Mm. 
Lbs. 
23324 
Osoyooe ,HC, May 17, 1929 
9 
Ad 
91 
00 
0-98 
51 
25 
2-04 
455 
2971 
Penticton, B.C., April 29, 1903 
c? 
Ad. 
97 
90 
1-02 
55 
26 
2-11 
500 
2906 
“ April 15, 1903 
9 
Ad 
89 
90 
1 -01 
54 
26 
2-07 
475 
16442 
Cvpress lake, Saak., June 2, 1921 . . . 
9 
Ad. N.B. 
90 
91 
1-01 
54 
23 
2-34 
460 
10i 
16519 
“ June 11, 1921... 
9 
Ad. N.B. 
92 
86 
0-93 
52 
22-5 
2-31 
420 
10549 
Red Deer r., Alberta, July 18, 1917. . 
9 
Ad. N.B. 
85 
86 
1-01 
50 
26 
1-92 
M. 
23965 
Churchill, Man., June 19, 1930 
& 
Ad 
86 
88 
1-02 
50 
25 
2-00 
450 
17383 
Peace river, Alberta, May 19, 1921. . 
9 
Y 
80 
81 
1-01 
48 
23 
2-08 
435 
16199 
South Twin is., James bay, July 22, 
1920 
9 
Ad 
85 
82 
0-95 
50 
22 
2-27 
M. 
21014 
Cape Dorset, Baffin is., June 13, 1026 
Y 
80 
88 
0-98 
50 
25 
2-00 
420 
21015 
Cape Dorset, Baffin is., June 13, 1926 
9 
Y 
80 
80 
100 
47 
25 
1-88 
405 
21142 
Markham bav, Baffin is., June, 1926. 
? 
Ad.B 
82 
82 
1-00 
50 
24 
2-08 
445 
21077 
Cape Dorset, Baffin is., July 7, 1026. 
Ad.B 
79 
82 
1-03 
49 
22 
2-27 
435 
21078 
Cape Dorset, July 8, 1926 
9 
Ad.B 
84 
82 
0-97 
50 
24 
2-08 
410 
6i 
Average 
86-35 
86-21 
0-99 
50-71 
24-14 
2*10 
442-5 
Ad.=Adult. Y. = Yearling. N.B. = Non-breeding. B. = Breeding. M. = Moulting wings. 
12831 — 3 
