BIRDS OF MINNESOTA. 135 



TOTANUS FLA.VIPES (Gmelin). (255.) 



YELLOW-LEGS. 



From the first to the tenth of April the Yellow-legs appear 

 about the shallow pools and muddy ponds in small parties. In 

 these they wade about constantly for hours at a time when 

 unmolested, and when driven to wing, fly very swiftly away 

 in an irregular, Snipe-like manner, making a loud, whistling 

 note, illy adapted to concert melody. Their flight is wonder- 

 fully compact, the flock moving as if by one impulse through 

 all the gyrations incident to indecision where next to go, 

 which however often results in their return to the same pool 

 when the gunner has concealed himself effectually. From the 

 repeated observation of this phenomenon in many species of 

 bird life, I am convinced that in such cases only the individual 

 leading the flock takes the least cognizance of their surround- 

 ings, all others maintaining an instinctive attention to the mo- 

 tions of the leader alone. If by an exceptionally sudden sur- 

 prise the flock is momentarily deranged, in an instant the 

 former compactness is resumed as if nothing had occurred, 

 which would be impossible upon any other conceivable hypo- 

 thesis. The noisy, whistling notes of the species soon becomes 

 familiar to the gunner, which some of them learn to imitate 

 so well, that the deluded flock easily falls into the range of 

 his deadly missile. Their meat is scarcely less palatable than 

 the best of the Snipe kind. By the first of May most of them 

 have gone, probably much further north, to multiply by 

 reproduction and return here again about the first week in 

 September. I know nothing of their nidification habits, and 

 have never seen their eggs under circumstances to describe 

 them. 



Mr. Washburn, (as have nearly all my correspondents) 

 met with some flocks late in October. He says: — "At Dead 

 lake, Octcber 23d, I saw a few flocks of these birds flying 

 south. They were very tame, and exceedingly fat. Although 

 repeatedly shot at, they would return again to me on my 

 imitating their call." Great numbers of them are usually 

 found in the markets and restaurants at this season, as well as 

 earlier. Most of them have gone southward by the first of 

 November, but I have some records of their remaining until 

 the middle of that month. 



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