112 Birds of Colorado 



Mountains. It arrives from the south about the beginning of ^lay, 

 and has been noticed at Fort Lyon, ^lay 2nd, by Thorne, near Colorado 

 Springs (Allen & Brewster), near Denver, where common in May 

 (Henshaw), at Barr, where it is common on migration (Hersey & 

 Rockwell), and at Loveland, where it was seen by Smith, April 29th. 

 A female in winter plumage, taken October 4th at Barr Lake by 

 Warren, is preserved in the Colorado College Museum. 



Henshaw's record of an example taken by himself at Denver, July 

 24th, 1873, is obviously a mistake, as on that date, by his own account, 

 he was far away in New Mexico, near Fort Wingate. 



Habits. — The Dowitcher (i.e. Deutsche! or German Snipe) 

 is found about marshes and lagoons. It is usually met 

 with in small flocks, but in other respects is not unlike 

 the Snipe, except that it has slightly webbed toes and 

 swims well. 



Genus MICROPALAMA. 



Bill long and slender, slightly widened at the tip ; ear-opening 

 normal, behind the eye ; wings long and pointed ; taU doubly 

 emarginate; toes distinctly webbed basally ; reseixxbUixg Macrorhamphus 

 generally, but distinguished by its plain, unbarred tail, and the position 

 of the ear-opening. 



Only one species is known. 



Stilt Sandpiper. 3Iicropalama himantopus. 



A.O.U. Checklist no 233— Colorado Records— Thome 87, p. 264 ; 

 Morrison 89, p. 167 ; Osbvu-n 93, p. 212 ; H. G. Smith 96, p. 65 ; Cooke, 

 97, pp. 19, 65, 199 ; Henderson 03, p. 234 ; 09, p. 227 ; Hersey & 

 RockweU 09, p. 115. 



Description. — Female in siommer — Above mottled black, dusky, 

 tawny and white ; the primaries and most of the coverts plain dusky ; 

 the upper tail-coverts white, spotted with dusky ; tail ashy-grey, 

 edged and centred with white ; ear-coverts chestnut ; below white, 

 streaked anteriorly, barred posteriorly, with dusky and tawny ; iris 

 brown, bill and feet dusky greenish. Length 8-5 ; wing 5-4 ; tail 2-0 ; 

 culmen 1-65 ; tarsus 1'70. 



In winter the adults are ashy-grey above without black or tawny, 

 but with white edges to the feathers ; under-parts and a line over the 

 eye white, slightly suffused with dusky and finely streaked with 

 darker on the throat and breast. The male is slightly smaller — wing 

 5-0; bill 1-5. 



