THE WESTERN SOLITARY SANDPIPER. 671 



No. 271. 

 WESTERN SOLITARY SANDPIPER. 



A. O. I'. Xo, 256. Helodromas solitarius cinnamomeus (Brewster). 



Description. — Adult in siiiinncr: .Mjove, olive-ljrowii nr fuscous, witli a faint 

 greenish tinge, blackening on wings : tlie head and neck finely streaked, and the 

 back, etc., distinctly speckled with whitish, buffy or pale cinnamon; upper tail- 

 coverts dusky, the lateral feathers spotted or barred with white ; central tail- 

 feathers dusky, spotted on edges with white; the remaining feathers of tail white, 

 with heavy dusky bars ; underparts white, the sides of neck and breast and across 

 chest streaked with fuscous; axillars prominent, white, barred with dusky; bill 

 blackish; feet and legs dull greenish black. Winter j^litniaf/c: Colors more blend- 

 ed; olivaceous tinge of upperparts nearly wanting; whitish spotting less pure; 

 head and neck less distinctly streaked with light grayish brown. Immature: 

 Like adult in winter, but colors still more blended ; no streakings on head and 

 neck; spotting of back but¥y. Length 7.50-8.30 ( 190. 5-213.9) : wing 5.04 1 128) ; 

 tail 2.08 (32.8) ; bill T.13 ii^^.-) ; tarsus 1. 18 (30). 



Recognition Marks. — Chewink size; olive-brown with white speckling. To 

 be carefully distinguished from Act it is niaciilaria by its somewhat larger size 

 and slimmer build, as well as by the absence of spotting on the belly. IVect, ivcct 

 note a little sharper than that of ./, macnlaria. 



Nesting. — Not known to breed in Washington, but probably does so. Nest: 

 on the ground. Bt/ijs: 4 or 5, faint dark reddish fading to light drab or clay color, 

 spotted, blotched, and scrawled with brown, and with faint purplish shell mark- 

 ings on the larger end. Av. size. 1.39X.95 (35.3x24.1 1. Also described as 

 nesting in deserted nests of other birds, as Olive-backed Thrush, Rusty Crackle, 

 etc., after the well authenticated custom of H. ocliro/^us of Europe. 



General Range. — Western North America east to the Plains, but chiefly 

 coastwise; south in winter to Lower California and beyond. 



Range in Washington. — Imperfectly made out. All references to typicus 

 are placed here, but there are no contemporary specimens from Washington. 



Authorities. — Rhyacophilus solitarius (W'ils. ) Bon., Baird, Rep. Pac. R. R. 

 Surv. IX. 1858, p. 734. C&S. 242. [D". Incorrect.] Jones, Wilson Bulletin, 

 No. 33, p. 2y. 



Specimens. — Prov. 



"IT is neither because of excessive fear nor hauteur that birds of 

 this species are not often found mingling with others of tlie Sandpiper 

 kind, but only because they appreciate the beauty of woodsy pools and 

 upland plashes, which is lost on their more gregarious fellows. A Soli- 

 tary Sandpiper is most nearly comparable to the Spotted Sandpiper, but 

 is larger, slimmer, trimmer (if possible), with a voice a little higher-pitched 

 and thinner. These differences are easily made out if one is so fortun- 

 ate as to see the birds together. At a time when the distinctive points 



