280 BULLETIN 142, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM 



prised to see a marbled godwit flutter out from directly under the 

 horse, which was trotting along at a leisurely pace. We stopped as 

 soon as possible and found that we had driven directly over its nest, 

 which barely escaped destruction, for it lay between the wheel ruts 

 and the horse's footprints, one of which was within a few inches of 

 it. The nest was in every way similar to the first one, the bird 

 having beaten down the short grass to form a slight hollow in which 

 the four handsome eggs had been laid in plain sight. 



On June 9, 1906, we visited the locality where the first nest was 

 found, and I enjoyed a most interesting experience with an unusu- 

 ally tame individual of this normally shy species. While walking 

 across the flat meadow near the creek, I happened to see a marbled 

 godwit crouching on her nest beside a pile of horse droppings. She 

 was conspicuous enough in spite of her protective coloration, for the 

 nest was entirely devoid of concealment in the short grass. Though 

 we stood within 10 feet of her, she showed no signs of flying away, 

 which suggested the possibility of photographing her. My camera 

 was half a mile away in our wagon, but I soon returned with it and 

 began operations at a distance of 15 feet, setting up the camera on 

 the tripod and focussing carefully. I moved up cautiously to within 

 10 feet and took another picture, repeating the performance again 

 within 5 feet. She still sat like a rock, and I made bold to move still 

 closer, spreading the legs of the tripod on either side of her and 

 placing the camera within 3 feet of her; I hardly dared to breathe, 

 moving very slowly as I used the focussing cloth, and changed 

 my plate holders most cautiously; but she never offered to move 

 and showed not the slightest signs of fear, while I exposed all the 

 plates I had with me, photographing her from both sides and plac- 

 ing the lens within 2 feet of her. She sat there patiently, panting 

 in the hot sun, apparently distressed by the heat, perhaps partially 

 dazed by it, and much annoyed by the ants which were constantly 

 crawling into her eyes and half open bill, causing her to wink or 

 shake her head occasionally. I reached down carefully and stroked 

 her on the back, but still she did not stir, and I was finally obliged 

 to lift her off the nest in order to photograph the eggs. 



Two nests found by Gerard A. Abbott (1919) in Benson County, 

 North Dakota, were evidently better concealed than the nests we 

 found. He writes: 



I was certainly surprised to discover my first godwit's nest with tlie parent 

 crouching beneath a little screen of woven grass blades on four heavily 

 blotched eggs. Her general contour and the situation and design of the nest 

 was suggestive of many king rails whose nests I have found, after noticing how 

 the grass blades were woven together canopy like to shield the bird and her 

 treasures. About a mile from this nest and screened on one side by willow 

 sprouts sat another tame godwit. This time the grassy hollow held five 

 boldly marked eggs. Incubation was one-half completed and the date was 



