144 NORTH AMERICAN FAUNA 61, FISH AND WILDLIFE SERVICE 



more plentiful, and mating was in full swing. At this time, 

 flocks were still common on the beaches — several flocks were 

 noted at St. Catherine Cove on May 17. A flock of 150 to 200 

 birds, feeding on the tide flat, occasionally would rise, maneuver, 

 wheel, and turn in the air (in characteristic sandpiper fashion), 

 then settle back on the beach. Thereupon, a great babel of 

 chattering would arise, as they all dabbled busily in the wet sand 



and mud. 



On May 18, a single bird was collected on the beach. It proved 

 to be a female with an egg almost ready for the shell. The next 

 day, a flock of 400 was seen. The significance of seeing these 

 large flocks at the same time that others were nesting is hard 

 to determine. They must have been nonbreeders or late nesters. 



On May 23, these sandpipers were common on the higher 

 tundra back of Moffet Cove, Izembek Bay trilling and calling, 

 evidently nesting or still making preparations. Some had ob- 

 viously selected the nesting place or had eggs. By May 28, egg 

 laying was definitely under way. 



A nest containing four eggs, found June 5, was a cavity in the 

 ground lined with a few tiny leaves — diameter was 100 mm.; 

 depth was 53 mm. 



These nesting habits were verified on later expeditions (in 

 1936 and 1937) throughout the Aleutian chain. Some sandpipers 

 nested close to tidewater, others nested back in the hills — some- 

 times a considerable distance from a body of water. On June 1, 

 1937, on Atka Island, I found 2 nests, each containing 4 eggs. 

 They were shallow depressions in a mass of low vegetation, 

 lined with bits of lichens, straws, and dwarf-willow leaves. 



Another nest, with four eggs, was found June 4, high up on 

 Kiska Island. It was a depression in the moss beside a rock ; the 

 cavity was 3 by 4 inches wide, and IV2 inches deep. 



On June 22, 1936, on Atka Island, I found a dead, newly 

 hatched young. On June 22, 1937, Scheffer found a brood of 4 

 recently hatched young on Little Kiska Island. Another brood 

 of 4, several days old, was found on Little Sitkin Island on June 

 27 ; and, on June 29, a brood of 3 was found on Rat Island. 



I heard the mating song of the Aleutian sandpiper at Izembek 

 Bay in 1925. Quoting from my field report, the song suggested — 



the droning trill of toads, varied by a repetition of "per-deerrrr, per-deerrrr" 

 . . . very much like the red-backed sandpiper's call, but shorter. Later on, 

 when frightened from their nests, they had a variety of alarm calls. As they 

 flew away, they would call "Ka-deer, ka-deer, ka-deer," similar to the notes 

 of mating time, but shorter and sharper, and they also uttered a very rapid 

 "uh-uh-uh-uh-uh-uh-uh." 



