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The Status of the Black-Throated Loon (Gavia Arctica) As a North American Bird

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The Status of the Black-Throated Loon (Gavia Arctica) As a North American Bird Vol. 191?XXXIV] I HERSE¾,The Black-throated Loonin N. A. 283 THE STATUS OF THE BLACK-THROATED LOON (GAVIA ARCTICA) AS A NORTH AMERICAN BIRD. BY F. SEYMOUR H•ERSEY. I• collectingand tabulating data for use in the distributional portionof Mr. A. C. Bent'swork on the IJife-Historiesof North American Birds, the published material on the Black-throated Loon was found to be unsatisfactory,--the recordsof various observersbeing frequentlyindefinite or in many easesnot based on actual specimenssecured. The earlierwriters gave the species a rather wide range in North America, which has been gradually restricted until in the present A. O. U. Cheek-List it is stated to breed only in the KotzebueSound region of Alaska, and from Cumberland Sound south to Ungava, while some half dozen scattering localities in the United States are said to have been visited casuallyin winter. It was finally decidedto verify, so far as possible,all North American recordsand requestsfor data were sent to all who were in a positionto give authenticinformation concerning any of the variousrecords or the specimenson which they were based. The results of this correspondenceproved no less interesting than surprising. Mr. Bent has very generouslyplaced all this data in the hands of the writer. He has also examinedand measuredthe specimens of this speeiesand Gavia pacificain the collectionsof the U.S. National Museum,the Museumof ComparativeZo51ogy (includ- ing the Bangscollection) and the private collectionof Mr. William Brewster. Mr. W. DeW. Miller of the American Museum of Natural History and Mr. P. A. Taverner of the GeologicalSurvey of Canada have measured the birds in the eolleetlons of those institutions and Dr. Louis B. Bishop has sent notes and measure- ments from the specimensin his collection. I have tabulated below, by locality, the various recordsand the resultsof our investigations. Alaska: It was formerly supposedthat the Black-throated Loon rangedalong the whole Bering Sea coastof Alaska. There [Auk 284 HERSEY,The Black-throatedLoon in N. A. [July are two specimensin the National Museum collection(No. 64303, St. George Id., Pribilofs, June 22, and No. 76004, St. Michael, taken by Nelson) and one in the collectionof Mr. Brewster (No. 48760, Nome, August 20, 1905). All other Alaskan specimens that we have examinedare pacifica. The breedingof the species in Kotzebue Sound appears to rest on the records of Grinnell (PacificCoast Avifauna, No. 1) of two setsof eggstaken in 1899. Dr. Grinnellwrites underdate of April 11, 1916,"In my Kotzebue report it is my impressionthat I simply followed the custom of precedingnaturalists in the region (Nelson, et al) and used the name arcticaon no other ground." He also states, "There are no birds in any of our collections,•rom the Kowak regionof Alaska, but I think it is justifiable to supposethat they are the same, namely pacifica." HudsonBay Region:In the ' OrnithologicalResults of the Cana- dian 'Neptune' Expedition to Hudson Bay and Northward,' 1903-1904,Elfrig records(Auk, XXII, p. 234) both birdsand eggs taken at SouthamptonIsland by A. P. Low and that they were breeding abundantly. Mr. Taverner writes, "I have Low's Hudson Bay birds and I can see absolutelyno differencebetween them and the Pacific. In fact, o• some thirty birds taken •rom SouthamptonIsland all along the Arctic Coast and B[rltlsh] C[olumbia]I can make but one form." CumberlandSound Region: Kumlien's record (Bull. 15, U.S. Nat. Mus.)is apparently our only authority •or thisregion. While he states a bird was shot June 24, this specimenis not now in the National Museum and no othersappear to have been taken. Ungava: I do not know on what authority this loon has been attributed to Ungava. Turner in his list o• Labrador birds (Proc.U.S. Nat. Mus., 1885),'basedprincipally on his observations in Ungava, mentions only Stearns' record and this record refers to the Labrador coast and not to this locality. Mr. W. E. Clyde Todd found birds paired and evidentlybreeding on the east coast of JamesBay but all were pacifica. Mr. J. H. Fleming writes that all birdsfrom JamesBay that he has seenwere Pacific Loons. Labrador: Audubon mentions(Birds o• America) that he saw a few pairs while in Labrador,but apparentlynone were secured. He doesnot state where the specimenswere obtainedfrom which ¾ ol. 1917XXXIV1 I H•aSE¾,The Black-throated Loonin N. A. 285 his drawingswere made but probably they were European birds. R. Bell records(Rep. Prog. Geol. Surv. Canada)male, female and young shot on Nottingham Island, Hudson Strait, August 28, 1884. If these birds were preservedthey are not now in the mu- seum at Ottawa. Mr. J. H. Fleming states that birds from Hud- son Strait in his collectionare pacifica. Mr. W. A. Stearnsmen- tions (Notes on the Nat. Hist. of Labrador) two specimensshot by oneof the Frenchpriests at Bersimisbut doesnot indicatewhat finally became of them or if either was preserved. Dr. Charles W. Townsendinforms us he doesnot know of any Labradorspeci- menof this speciesin any collection. It appearsthat someform of Black-throatedLoon occasionally occurson the Labrador coast but until a speelmenis securedand comparedwith spedmensof 2•acificait seemsbest to eonslderall recordsas moreor lessquestionable. Greenland:As Gaylaarcfica occurs in Iceland, it seemsprobable that it may occasionallybe foundin southernGreenland but there doesnot appearto be any trustworthy record. Mr. J. H. Fleming writes that he has specimensfrom the Carey Islands north of Baffln Bay and they are PacificLoons. Quebec:All recordsfor this provincethat I have seenrefer to Labrador. New Brunswick: Baird, Brewer and Ridgway (Water Birds, Vol. 2) mentiona singlespecimen taken at Point Lepreau,in the Bay of Fundy. This is the sameas the recordin the ' Proe.Bost. Soe. of Nat. Hist.,' Vol. 17. It is very indefiniteand no further information is given. Herriek's statement (Bull. Essex Inst., Vol. 5) that this species"occurs in winter" at Grand Manan is not verifiedby morerecent observers or substantiatedby specimens. Maine: A bird taken at Cutler, Maine, in December, 1881, is said to be in the possessionof Mr. Newell Eddy of Bay City, Michigan. Knightsays (Birds of Maine) that its correctidentifica- tion has been "shown to be unquestionable." As so many speci- mens supposedto be correctly identifiedhave proved to be some- thing very different,it seemsdesirable that this bird be reexamined. I am informed by Mr. Norman A. Wood that Mr. Eddy has recentlypassed away and it is not possible,at this time, to examine the birds in his eolleetlon. 286 H•Rs•Y,The Black-throated Loonin N..4. LJul¾[Auk Massachusetts: There is no authentic record for this State although young birds supposedto be Black-throated Loons have been occasionallyrecorded. The records are not allowed by Howe and Allen (Birds of Massachusetts). Connecticut:Sage and Bishop (Birds of Connecticut)do not list this speciesin their book. It has been given by early writers, undoubtedly in error. New York: A full plumagedadult male was shot April 29, 1893, on L6ng Island and was recordedby Mr. William Dutcher in 'The Auk', Vol. 10,p. 265. Thisrecord is the onlyone for New York that is basedon an actual specimenand it has been very generallyquoted. The bird is now in the AmericanMuseran of Natural History and Mr. W. DeW. Miller, who has recentlycriti- cally examinedand measuredit, writes that it "is unquestionably G. pacifica." SouthCarolina: Audubonis the only authorityfor the occur- rence of the' Black-throated Loon in this State. It has not since ß beenobserved. Wayne (Birds of South Carolina) states, "Audu- bon was unquestionablymistaken in the identificationof the bird shot." Texas: Audubonalso recorded this speciesfrom Texas. Baird, Brewer and Ridgway discredit the record which is, with little doubt, an error. Ontario: It is supposedthat this loon has occurred several timesin Ontario. Mr. J. H. Fleminghas looked up severalrecords from this •egionand saysthat, so far, he has"found no record that will bear investigation." Also, "if any Black-throated Loons occur in the Great Lakes they will be pacifica." Ohio: There are alsoseveral supposed occurrences of this species in Ohio. Prof. Lynds Jones,writing in regard to these records, says, "Dr. Wheaton mentionsthe capture of one specimen,but on hearsayevidence. I had severalreports of specimenscaptured by trustworthy persons,but I cannot vouch for them personally. A specimenwas sent to me two years ago from Painesville,pur- ported to be a Black-throated,but I did not make it out such,and so sent it to Oberholser,who pronouncedit a Red-throated." Illinois: Mr. Ridgway writes regardingincluding this loon in the avifauna of Illinois, that "it was based on purely 'general •Vol.1917 XXXYV] J HERSEY,The Black-throated Loonin N. A. 287 considerationsonly' at a time when probably no one doubted the occurrenceof that speciesin North America and that it was not based on a specimen. We were, unfortunately, not so particular about such things in the earlier days." Wisconsin: It is supposedthat the Black-throated Loon has been taken three times in Wisconsin. Kumllen and Hollister refer to theserecords (Birds of Wisconsin)very briefly. One is said to have been taken at Milwaukee and to be in the Public Museum of that city. Mr. Henry L. Ward, director df that institution, writes under date of February 8, 1917, "I have been trying to run down the reported Black-throatedLoon contained in this museum,but can find no trace of it at all The speci•nen is evidently not containedin any of our seriesof mountedbirds,
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