196 BULLETIN 142, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM 



Eggs. — The Baird sandpiper laj-s ordinarily four eggs, occasionally 

 only three. These vary in shape from ovate or ovate pyriform to 

 subovate, and they have a slight gloss. In color they often resemble 

 certain types of western sandpipers' eggs, as they are usually of a 

 decidedly reddish tone ; but they are considerably larger. The ground 

 color varies from " pinkish buff " to " pale pinkish buff " or from 

 " olive buff " to " cartridge buff." Three quite different types are rep- 

 resented in my collection. In the western sandpiper type the "pink- 

 ish buff " ground color is quite evenly covered over the whole egg 

 with small, elongated spots, somewhat thicker at the larger end and 

 having a spiral tendency, of " Hay's russet " and " chestnut brown," 

 with a few underlying spots of "brownish drab." Another set has 

 a " cartridge buff " ground color, which is unevenly covered, chiefly 

 at the larger end, with small spots of duller browns, " bister," " Sac- 

 cardo's umber," and light shades of "brownish drab." This seems 

 to be the commonest type. An unusually beautiful set has a " pinkish 

 buff " ground color, sparingly sprinkled with minute brown dots and 

 boldly blotched with great, irregular splashes of deep, rich browns, 

 " chestnut," " chocolate," and " liver brown," overlying large splashes 

 of various shades of "vinaceous gray." The measurements of 54 

 eggs average 33.1 by 23.8 millimeters; the eggs showing the four 

 extremes measure 33.5 by 24.4, 34.3 by 24.6 and 30 by 22 millimeters. 



Young. — Incubation is shared by both sexes, but we have no data 

 as to its duration. Mr. Dixon (1917) found the male bird covering 

 the eggs more often than the female, and others have reported finding 

 the male caring for the young. Mr. Dixon (1917) says of the young: 



The young sandpipers were found feeding in the shallower pools, where the 

 water was less than 1 inch deep. At times as many as five were noted in an 

 area 1 yard square. They congregated along the water's edge, picking up, as 

 the tide slowly receded, many bits of food. The nature of this provender I 

 could not make out, although the young birds would often come within 20 feet 

 of me when I remained motionless for a few minutes. The old birds were 

 much more shy, often taking flight or retreating to distant gravel bars upon 

 my approach. Considerable time was spent by both young and old in making 

 short flights about the harbor. These flights alternated with periods of food 

 getting, and were seemingly in preparation for the fall migration. It was only 

 a few days then until the bulk of the species left on their southward journey. 



Plumages. — The downy young Baird sandpiper is well colored 

 to escape detection on the brown tundra moss. The crown and 

 upper parts are variegated with black and " tawny " in an irregular 

 pattern and dotted with white terminal tufts ; the crown is centrally 

 "tawny," with a median black stripe, and is bordered with black; 

 the forehead, back to eyes, sides of the head and all under parts are 

 pure white ; there is a black spot in the center of the forehead, a black 

 stripe from the bill, through the eye, to the occiput and another 



