102 Birds of Colorado 



Northern Phalarope. Lobipes Idbatus. 



A.O.U. Checklist no 223— Colorado Records — Drew 81, p. 249 ; 

 Morrison 88, p. 140 ; 89, p. 167 ; Cooke 97, pp. 19, 63, 199 ; Warren 

 08, p. 20 ; 09, p. 13 ; Henderson 09, p. 227 ; Felgor 09, p. 287. 



Description. — Female in summer — Above dark slaty, becoming dusky 

 on the wings and tail ; back and scapulars with a few streaks of tawny ; 

 a white wing-bar ; a large rusty patch on either side of the neck nearly 

 meeting below ; under-parts chiefly white ; the sides of the breast and 

 flanks marked with dusky ; iris dark brown, bill and feet black. 

 Length 7-5 ; wing 4-25 ; tail 2-0 ; culmen, -85 ; tarsus -75. 



The male is smaller and duller. In winter there is no rusty or tawny ; 

 the upper-parts are grey or ashy, variegated with white edges ; below 

 throughout, including the forehead and a stripe above the eye, white ; 

 a dusky stripe below the eye to the ear-coverts. Young birds are dusky 

 above and often show buffy edges to the scapulars. 



Distribution. — Circumpolar, breeding far north in both hemispheres, 

 wintering in north Africa and south Asia in the Old World. In America 

 breeding from Alaska to Hudson Bay and Greenland, south in winter 

 as far as Guatemala. 



In Colorado this species is only known as a migrant, passing through 

 the State in May and returning in October. It crosses the mountains 

 as well as the plains, and has been reported from Howardsville, 9,500 

 feet. May 22nd (Drew), Middle Park, May 26th, and Breckenridge 

 (Carter), Coventry and near Steamboat Springs, June 1st (Warren), 

 in the mountainous half of the State ; in the plains from Colorado 

 Springs, May 14th and 29th (Aiken coll.), Loveland, May 1st to 9th 

 (Cooke), Barr Lake, May, September (Felger) and Boulder co. 

 (Henderson). 



Habits. — The Phalaropes are all more abundant along 

 the coast than inland. They swim lightly and easily, 

 picking among the floating debris for their food. The male 

 undertakes the chief duties of incubation, and as is 

 generally the case, this habit is correlated with smaller 

 size and duller markings. 



■ Genus STEGANOPUS. 



Bill long and slender, sUghtly flattened and depressed, the culmen 

 about equal to the tarsus, both clearly exceeding the middle toe and 

 claw ; tail short and doubly emarginate ; toes with an even, unscalloped 

 marginal web, united basally only, not beyond the first joint in the 

 case of the middle and inner ones. 



