5 
While off the east coast of Guadalupe Island, on 2 6 April, we encoun¬ 
tered a flock of 11 birds flying north and paralleling the island about two 
miles off shore. 
Pomarine Jaeger Stercorarius pomarinus 4 
The Jaegers were seen on two successive days. All were light-phase 
adult birds with twisted central retrices. Two of these birds were at¬ 
tracted to fish that we caught on the free vehicle gear and floating on the 
surface. They were not observed to feed. 
Sterna sp. 3 
One bird was seen on 22 May at 30°56’n, 117°12'W, and two others on 
2k May at 29°38 ! , 117°26 ! (sightings 50 miles and 85 miles off Baja, 
respectively). The birds were not well observed, but were small with gray 
backs and were probably either Forster or Common Terns. 
Red Phalarope Phalaropus fulicarius 338 
The birds were seen during both parts of the trip. However, the birds 
seen during the Washington cruise were apparently not in migration. Many 
of these birds were still in winter plumage, some were molting, and a few 
were in nuptial plumage. But by 28 April the birds had begun moving north 
and greater proportions of these birds were in molting or in the real breed¬ 
ing plumage. Apparently the birds molt the body feathers in migration. All 
birds handled in Bering Sea in May and June last year had completed the molt. 
But the question arises, do the birds ever reach the breeding grounds with 
the molt still in progress? 
As was noted by Harrington who was working off central California from 
lS to 25 April, 1967 , the distribution of Red Phalaropes is local. This 
also seems to be true of the birds in migration. We encountered fronts or 
waves of birds moving north in flocks of 3 to 25 birds. An example: on 
4 May north of Guadalupe Island in a 13-minute period, six flocks totaling 
73 birds were seen. It was then 47 minutes before another group was encoun¬ 
tered. 
Xantus Murrelet Endomychura hypoleuca 6 
The small number of alcids recorded probably does not reflect actual 
densities, as the birds sit on the water and spend much time feeding under 
water. The birds are seen only when flushed by the approaching ship. Also, 
the birds were breeding on Guadalupe Island at this time and may not wander 
far from the island to feed. This is true of alcids breeding on St. George 
Island, Bering Sea. Here there will be concentrations of millions of alcids 
feeding along tide rips within five miles of the island. 
