the Birds of the Lower Petchora. 435 
after minute, was gaining volume and strength, soon to burst 
up the solid roof of ice over which we were passing. Our 
horses advanced slowly with ears pricked up and heads low, 
and sometimes positively refused to advance at all until the 
“vemstchik” went before them to test the strength of the 
ice. We arrived at 34.m. on the morning of the 19th May 
at the log-hut on the bank of the Zylma, whither MM: 
Znaminsky and Sacharoff had preceded us. Ducks were in 
countless thousands resting on the larger pools of water on 
the ice, and flying in all directions around. The meadows in 
the vicinity are favourite haunts at feeding-time of both Geese 
and Ducks ; and we had come over to get some flight-shooting 
at these great bands of migratory wildfowl. About 9.30 4.m. 
on the 20th May the Zylma ice was on the move, and the 
water, rising rapidly, being dammed back by the accumu- 
lation of ice at its mouth, began to flood the meadows and 
rush back through the “kourias,’ converting, in the short 
space of six or seven hours, the whole country on the south 
bank of the Zylma into a vast lake. We had had our shoot- 
ing; and it was not without some little trouble that we 
managed to return to Ust Zylma, with the aid of a boat 
brought by our men across the centre ice and across the lanes 
of water formed along both shores of the Petchora. The 
Ducks disappeared as if by magic, dispersing over the country 
or migrating again en masse further to the north. On the 
21st the Petchora ice broke up; and ten days later the river 
was clear of ice, and a vast tract of the country on the western 
or left bank was flooded by the rapidly rising waters. On 
the 10th June we commenced our journey down the river, 
having seen comparatively little of the wildfowl on migra- 
tion, with the exception of that one night’s flight-shooting, 
which, however, is something to be remembered. What we 
did see of the different species will be found mentioned each 
under its own heading. 
We may here mention that during our trip we pro- 
cured the eggs and down of ten species of Ducks; and upon 
carefully examining the different kinds we were able to 
SER. III.—VOL. VI. 2H 



































