SPOON-BILL SANDPIPER 243 



In color, size, and actions the spoon-billed sandpiper closely resembles the 

 Eastern least stint (Pisobia miniita ruficollis), the marked similarity between 

 them resulting in both the author and his fellow collector W. S. Brooks, 

 failing to distinguish between the two species until June 20, after we had 

 been among them for some days. Although the spatulate tip of this bird's 

 bill is very noticeable when viewed from directly above or below, it is not a 

 character which can be advantageously used to identify the species in the 

 field, for the simple reason that in nearly all close views of the living bird 

 only lateral or frontal aspects of the bill are obtained. Even when a bird was 

 feeding, and the bill was observed under the most favorable conditions, the 

 peculiar shape was not nearly as conspicuous as one would expect. In the 

 author's experience, the most reliable method of identifying the bird in the 

 field was by noting the glint of light that was reflected from the broad tip of 

 the upper mandible when the sunlight struck the bill at a certain angle. Even 

 in flight the bird could often be identified by this faint beam of reflected light. 

 We found that the sandpiper had a decided preference for the grassy margins 

 of fresh-water ponds, while single birds were frequently found feeding along 

 the algae-bordered rims of tundra pools. Sandy lagoons where rivers entered 

 the bay were favored by them as well. 



Fall. — The same writer outlines the fall migration, based on birds 

 in the British Museum, as follows: 



An adult male, still in summer plumage, was taken August 8, at the mouth 

 of ihe Amur River in southwestern Russia. An immature was secured on 

 October 8 at Hakodadi (Hakodate). Japan, while an adult female was col- 

 lected at Rangoon, India, on December 1. 



Winter. — In their winter home in India, according to Doctor Nel- 

 son (1887) "these birds frequent the muddy flats at the mouths of 

 rivers, sand bars, and the seashore, where, with the various species 

 of Tringa, they always find an abundant harvest of food deposited 

 by the receding tide." 



DISTRIBUTION 



Range. — Eastern Siberia, south in winter to southern China and 

 India; casual in Alaska. 



Breeding range. — The spoon-billed sandpiper has been found 

 breeding only along the Arctic coast of northeast Siberia (Cape 

 "Wankarem, Pithkaj, Cape Serdze, near Koliuchin Island, and Provi- 

 dence Bay). 



Winter range. — The winter range of this species appears to be 

 mainly on the coasts of India (Rangoon, Akyab, Tenasserim, and the 

 Arakan coast). 



Migration. — Specimens have been collected at Shanghai. China, in 

 April and it seems to arrive on its breeding grounds early in June 

 (Emma Harbor, Siberia, June 6). An early date of fall arrival is 

 indicated by a specimen from the mouth of the Amur River, south- 

 western Russia, taken on August 8, while a late date of fall departure 

 is October 8, at Hakodadi, Japan. 



