Four Birds New to St. Lawrence Island, Alaska
Four Birds New to St. Lawrence Island, Alaska.
A surprising number of birds have been recorded from St. Lawrence Island, Alaska, including many New World as well as Old World species, and still the list apparently is not complete.
In the summer of 1937, Mrs. Murie had an opportunity to visit St. Lawrence Island and while she was there an Eskimo, Jimmie Otiyohok, brought to her five bird skins of species that he said were strange to the, Eskimo. All these proved to be of interest. They were prepared by Otiyohok’s wife, who has learned to prepare bird skins, and were neatly labeled. The birds were identified as follows:
Euphagus carolinus. Rusty Blackbird. A male taken at Gambell, St. Lawrence Island, by Jimmie Otiyohok. There are slight traces of rusty coloration in the plumage.
Hylocichla minimu alicia. Gray-cheeked Thrush. A female taken at Gambell, May 26, 1937.
Junco kyemalis hyemalis. Slate-colored Junco. Two males, both taken at Gambell, on May 21, 1937.
Pruneella montanella. Mountain Accentor. A male taken at Camp Collier, St. Lawrence Island, on October 13, 1936.
These birds are all new to the avifauna of St. Lawrence Island, and the Mountain Accentor has been recorded for North America only once before. The previous record was based on a specimen taken by C. G. Harrold on Nunivak Island, Alaska, on October 3, 1927 (Swarth, Proc. Calif. Acad. Scf., ser. 4, vol. 17, 1928, p. 2.51). It is not surprising to find Siberian birds on St. Lawrence Island, which lies much closer to Siberia than to Alaska. It is possibly significant that four of the birds were taken in the spring and one in autumn, when migratory movements were taking place.
I am indebted to Dr. H. C. Oberholser and Dr. Herbert Friedmann, who compared the specimens with collections in the United States National Museum.
Olaus J. Murie
Bureau of Biological Survey, Jackson, Wyoming, May 14, 1938
