EARLY MONTANA NATURALISTS AND OOLOGISTS* MARC J. BECHARD, Department of Biology, Boise State University, Boise, Idaho, U.S.A. 83725 and C. STUART HOUSTON, 863 University Drive, Saskatoon, Saskat¬ chewan, Canada. S7N OJ8 Many eminent naturalists studied birds Verendrye had visited the Mandan on the plains of northern Montana. villages in December 1738 and that Beginning with Lewis and Clark in 1805, Spanish fur traders already had ascend¬ naturalists initially crossed the state us¬ ed the Missouri, Lewis mistakenly wrote ing the two major "water highways," the on 7 April 1805, just before leaving Fort Missouri and Yellowstone rivers, which Mandan, (north of present day Bismarck), joined a few miles east of the present that he was "about to penetrate a coun¬ North Dakota-Montana boundary. In the try ... on which the foot of civilized man 1860s, army surgeons, trained in natural had never trodden."21 Although they sciences, began to accompany U.S. Ar¬ were not the first to visit this stretch of my expeditions which surveyed railroad river, they made the earliest observations routes through hostile Indian territory. concerning its wildlife. Lewis, for in¬ Each surgeon made collections of plants stance, was the first to report Canada and animals. Two of them, George Geese nesting in hawk and eagle nests, Suckley and Elliott Coues, briefly cross¬ of a previous year, high in cottonwoods, ed the 49th parallel, north into what is and Clark's description of the "whistle- now southern Saskatchewan. Records of ing" note of the swan led George Ord to these early visitors provide a valuable give the common name of "Whistling historic perspective concerning the nor¬ Swan" to Anas columbianus in 1815. By thern great plains, which then contain¬ 26 April the expedition left the mouth of ed vast herds of bison, elk, and pro¬ the Yellowstone and entered into what nghorn. Nowhere, except perhaps In the is now Montana. Lewis described nor¬ pioneering days on the African veldt, had thern Montana as "truly a desert barren there been comparable numbers of large country," leading early cartographers mammals.21 and later explorers to label it "the Great American Desert".21 On 29 April, they Meriwether Lewis and William Clark shot their first Grizzly Bear just above the were commissioned by President Thomas mouth of the Poplar River. Lewis' Jefferson to map the Missouri River and description of this bear, then common on continue to the Pacific Ocean. Clark was the plains, was the first with anatomical the cartographer. Lewis, though much detail and it was later used by Ord as the less knowledgeable than later naturalists, "type specimen" for Ursus horribilis in and quite unaware of the need to 1815.37 describe and name new species, was to collect the plants and animals. As Unfortunately, specimens Lewis col¬ McKelvey says, "Lewis and Clark were lected between Fort Mandan and Great to all intents and purposes untrained in Falls, which they reached on 22 June, any science and had as their major were destroyed by flood waters at Great responsibility the safety of some fifty per¬ Falls during the next winter. Without sons."34 Unaware that the senior La them, most of Lewis' observations do not * Fifth in a series on oologists of the Northern Great Plains. 20 Blue Jay allow confident identification as to Latin names and thus failed to be species. Nevertheless, Lewis wrote of the recognized as "type specimens." Swift Fox and was the first to recognize that the Western and Eastern Lewis' list of botanical "firsts" is more meadowlarks were different. While ex¬ impressive, because a German botanist, ploring the Marias River, he recorded suf¬ Frederick Pursh, gave Latin names to 77 ficient detail to receive credit for the first of Lewis' specimens. Many of these were sight record of the Sage Grouse, 22 years collected along the Marias River during before Bonaparte gave it a scientific Lewis' return trip through Montana in Ju¬ name. Before crossing the Rocky Moun¬ ly and early August of 1806.21 tains into Idaho, Lewis collected a Bushy- tailed Wood Rat, which became the type Reports of unlimited wildlife, par¬ specimen when described by Ord in ticularly fur-bearers, soon attracted the 1815.37 interest of trading companies. By 1831, steamboats of the American Fur Com¬ Lewis' most lasting contributions to or¬ pany went up the Missouri regularly as nithology were not made until the ex¬ far as Pierre and once a year as far as Fort pedition's return trip in 1806. Near the Union, built in 1829 near the junctions present site of Kamiah, Idaho, he col¬ of the Yellowstone and Missouri rivers. lected specimens later named by Alex¬ Ornithologists soon followed. ander Wilson as the Lewis' Woodpecker, Clark's Nutcracker and Western In 1833, Alexander Maximilian, Prince Tanager.2 Other "firsts" credited to Lewis of Wied-Neuwied, spent 2 weeks at Fort by Cutright and Coues were not given Union, and then followed up the March 1986. 44(1) 21 Missouri the full width of the plains to who travelled overland and did not rely Fort McKenzie on the Marias River, 11 on the river for transportation.42 Led by miles northeast of present Fort Benton. Governor l.l. Stevens of the new Maximilian shot and prepared many Washington Territory, the party left Sauk birds, but most were lost when the steam¬ Rapids, Minnesota, on 6 June. Before boat carrying them went up in flames.32 reaching Fort Union, Suckley led a side A Pinyon Jay specimen was nevertheless trip on 28 July to visit the pierced rock saved and described by Maximilian as a (Roche Percee), in "British Territory."41 species new to science. Suckley collected bird specimens in North Dakota and Saskatchewan and In 1843, John James Audubon, accom¬ preserved them in alcohol, but unfor¬ panied by Edward Harris, Isaac Sprague tunately they were lost in the Ohio River and John G. Bell, all of whom thereby en route to Washington.31 Suckley left contributed their names to new bird Fort Union on 9 August, travelling with species, ascended the Missouri and resid¬ horses and wagons alongside the ed at Fort Union for over 2 months, 12 Missouri River across the Northern Great June to 16 August. Once or twice they Plains. He reached Fort Benton on 8 followed buffalo hunts southwest into September and continuing west reached what is now Montana. On 24 June Fort Colville on 13 November and the Sprague killed a new species, the mouth of the Columbia River on 9 Sprague's Pipit, and discovered its nest December. At Shoalwater Bay, with five eggs. As Audubon remarked to Washington, he collected the type Harris, "it had very rarely happened to specimen of the dark subspecies of the him to discover a new bird and to ascer¬ Merlin, named Falco columbarius tain all its habits and to procure its nest suckleyi by Ridgway. With J.G. Cooper and eggs in the course of a few days."33 he wrote A Report on the Birds Collected on the Route Near the 47th and 49th At Fort Union, Audubon also collected Parallels, which was later reprinted with a new sparrow, which he named for a a different title.16 17 42 20-year-old student, Spencer Fullerton Baird, who had been unable to accom¬ In 1854 and 1855, Ferdinand Van- pany the expedition.23 The Western diveer Hayden accompanied Colonel Meadowlark, long overlooked in spite of Alfred Vaughan, an Indian agent, to Mon¬ a very different song from the well-known tana. They explored the Yellowstone Eastern Meadowlark, was recognized by River and the Missouri River west to Fort Audubon and Harris as the "New Benton. Hayden returned for further ex¬ Meadowlark" as they ascended the plorations of both rivers in 1856, this time Missouri.3 The "type specimen" was not under Lieutenant G.K. Warren. Flayden's collected until they reached Fort Union,2 greatest contributions were to Geology, then in "Nebraska Territory" though the but he published notes on 183 species of territory was not formally promulgated birds. His accounts are disappointingly until 1854. Such listings for "Fort Union, vague as to locality and date. However, Nebraska" have confused many an or¬ he reported the Turkey Vulture as "very nithologist because, although just 67 abundant," and the Merlin as "one of the miles south of the 49th parallel, the ad¬ most common and abundant birds in the dress did not change to "Dakota Ter¬ Northwest ... usually along the woody ritory" until 1867. bottoms of streams." The Common Raven was "very abundant ... in the Dr. George Suckley, who accom¬ vicinity of large herds of buffalo," and the panied the Northern Pacific Railroad Ex¬ Black-billed Magpie was observed pedition of 1853, was the first naturalist feeding on the meat of the "buffalo and 22 Blue Jay other game." Hayden collected some sets he collected, 5 contained Brown¬ bird skins, including specimens of the headed Cowbird eggs, whereas 29 nests Eskimo Curlew taken in migration near of other ground-nesting birds had no Fort Union.29 cowbird eggs.1 On 10 July, they crossed the Little Missouri River and by 13 July In 1860 Dr. James Graham Cooper (for they reached Beaver Creek, near present whom the Cooper Ornithological Socie¬ Wibaux, Montana. ty was named, and the son of William Cooper, for whom Bonaparte named Upland Sandpipers were common on Cooper's Hawk) was attached to a the prairies and an occasional Fer¬ military expedition under Major G.M. ruginous Hawk nest contained "coarse Blake, to follow the overland route along sticks mixed with the ribs of antelopes the new military road constructed by and buffalos." On 16 July they reached Captain John Mullan through the Rocky the Yellowstone River near present Glen¬ Mountains west of present Helena.15 dive.