The sandpiper tribe is closely related 

 to plovers but forms a separate family of 

 about 80 species. They are found prin- 

 cipally in open country near water, but 

 a few species, such as snipe and wood- 

 cock, prefer marshes or moist wood- 

 lands. The plumage is usually gray or 

 brown above and the underparts white, 

 barred, or spotted. Although much like 

 plovers in habits, sandpipers are more 

 diversified in size (5-24 inches) and es- 

 pecially in the shape of the bill, which 

 may be moderately or extremely long, 

 and straight, decurved, or recurved. 



One of the largest members of this 

 family is the long-billed curlew, which 

 measures almost two feet in length and 

 is distinguished by its very long, down- 

 curved bill. A smaller relative, the Es- 

 kimo curlew, was formerly very abun- 

 dant but has become virtually, if not 

 totally, extinct within recent decades. 

 Unique among its fellows is the dimin- 

 utive spoon-billed sandpiper of eastern 

 Asia. Although superficially resembling 

 other small sandpipers, its bill has a 

 conspicuously flattened, spoon-like tip. 

 The ruff, a common Eurasian sand- 

 piper, is especially noteworthy for its 

 remarkable courtship performance. In 

 spring conspicuous erectile featherruffs 

 and facial warts are grown by the males, 

 who posture and fence at ancestral court- 

 ship areas for hours, competing for the 

 assembled females, or "reeves." Perhaps 

 most extraordinary of all is the fact 

 that at other times the sexes remain 

 apart, and even in winter live in sep- 

 arate flocks. 



Several groups of birds related to, but 

 in appearance quite unlike, sandpipers 

 and their kind are sometimes called 

 "shorebirds" as a matter of convenience. 

 Perhaps the strangest of all is the skim- 

 mer, a tropical tern-like bird with a 

 blade-shaped bill. In feeding, skimmers 

 plow the water's surface with their pro- 

 truding lower mandible, catching small 

 fish and Crustacea. Skimmers breed in 

 colonies on sand beaches and are often 

 active at night. Ocean shores and large 

 rivers and lakes are their habitat. 



Skuas and jaegers resemble gulls, but 

 are even more aggressive and predatory. 

 They often rob other birds of food and 

 harass their nesting colonies. The four 

 species of this family mainly inhabit 

 oceans and coasts of colder latitudes, but 



several migrate between the Northern 

 and Southern Hemispheres. Gulls and 

 terns are more cosmopolitan in distribu- 

 tion, but nevertheless seldom venture 

 great distances from land. Most of the 

 82 species prefer seashores and lakes or 

 rivers, but some inhabit prairie marshes. 

 Typically the plumage is gray and white, 

 though many gulls have black wing-tips 

 and most terns are black-capped. Gulls 

 are essentially scavengers and have rel- 

 atively heavy bills; terns have sharply 

 pointed bills and usually dive for their 

 food. 



The auk family, which includes dove- 

 kies, murres, guillemots and puffins, is 

 confined to the Northern Hemisphere 



Above: 

 Long-billed Curlew 



Left: 



Pheasant-tailed 

 Jacana 



Left: 



Black Skimmer 



Below: 

 Horned Puffin 



where the various species nest in enor- 

 mous colonies on rocky cliffs or islands. 

 Puffins, comical creatures with out-sized 

 bills, are the only auks that make nests. 

 These are placed, safe from predators, 

 at the ends of burrows. Most auks nest 

 on narrow ledges and lay eggs that are 

 pointed at one end and thus roll in small 

 circles if jostled. Auks winter in the open 

 sea and approach land only during the 

 breeding season. Perhaps the most fa- 

 mous species is the great auk, a large, 

 flightless bird that was exterminated by 

 Icelandic fishermen in 1844. 



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