Dr. O. Finsch's Ornithological Letters. 57 
is clothed chiefly with willows. As the river was very high, 
the low land on the left was flooded to a great degree, and we 
often went for long distances in narrow channels, or crossed 
meadow-grounds. Here waterfowl were very numerous, hut 
shy. We distinguished Anas acuta, A. clypeata, A. crecca, 
A. penelope, and A. fuligula; Geese and Swans kept too far 
off to be made out. Hcematopus ostralegus and Numenius 
arquata were not uncommon, but only in small companies. 
In the woods on the right bank we found Corythus enucleator, 
Fringilla montifringilla, Sylvia garrula, Phylloscopus tro- 
chilus, and P. tristis, the latter resembling in manner very 
much our P. rufus. No Flycatcher ! no Garrulus or Nuci- 
fraga ! Tits were heard only a few times, but not seen. Ob¬ 
servations, indeed, are very difficult. After leaving Tomsk 
we suffered continually from mosquitos, and it was nearly im¬ 
possible to leave the lotka. Even an English mosquito-gar¬ 
ment was of no use; and the woods are so thick that no veil 
is of any benefit. The woods in geueral are silent ; and if 
a bird is to be heard, it is still more difficult to see it in 
the thickness of the foliage and the underwood. The most 
common birds were Corvus cornix and Pica caudata, Em¬ 
ber iz a pusilla, Fringilla montifringilla, Motacilla alba, and 
M . cinereocapilla, which were to be seen at every station. 
Passer domesticus and P. campestris are only to be found 
on stations where cattle live; both species occur in the 
town of Berezoff, but not in Obdorsk. P. campestris goes 
as far up as Kuschowat, the last Russian village between 
Berezoff and Obdorsk, but disappears during winter time, 
as both Sparrows do at Berezoff. Hirundo rustica we found 
two stations further up than Berezoff, and H. urbica only 
as far as Monastir Kondinsky, about 260 versts above Sama- 
rowa. At Tschematschefskaja, 130 versts from Kondinsky, 
we found Picus minor and Turdus pilaris, both with fledg¬ 
lings ; and at Balschoi Ustram I got from an Ostiak two young 
of Ulula lapponica. At Kuschowat we first found Fringilla 
linaria, if I remember right, and for the last time saw Pra- 
tincola rubicola. Emberiza schceniclus we observed on the 
stations on the left bank everywhere where willow trees with 
