302 BULLETIN 14 6, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM 



in. Mostly, however, they busied them^Jelves upon the wet sand just above 

 the last reach of the falling tide. 



Ouce they found a place where the shrimps or prawns were evidently more 

 plentiful than elsewhere, and it was amusing to see how eagerly they worked, 

 each determined to get its full share of the plunder. Thrusting their short, 

 stout bills into the sand, they drew out their squirming prey, dropped it on 

 the sand, picked it up and shook it, and dropped it again, till finally they had 

 it in condition for swallowing. These mauoeuvers they repeated, all in desperate 

 competitive haste, till the beach within a circle of a few feet in circumference 

 was thickly dotted with minute hillocks of sand, such as I should never have 

 attributed to the work of any bird, had it not been done before my eyes. Then 

 the supply seemed to be exhausted, and they moved on in search of another 

 bonanza. 



At other times they resorted to patches of seaweed lying here and there a 

 little higher on the beach, turning them bottom side up. or brushing them aside, 

 to feast on such small game as had taken shelter underneath. Their action 

 here was like that of a dog when he buries a bone by pushing the earth over 

 it with his nose. They lowered their heads, and with more or less effort accord- 

 ing to circumstances accomplished their purpo.se. If the obstacle proved too 

 heavy to be moved in this manner, they drew back a little and made a run at 

 it as men do in using a battering-ram. More than once I saw them gaining the 

 needed momentum by this means. They quarreled now and then over the busi- 

 ness, and once two of them faced each other, bill to bill, like gamecocks — a 

 most unusual proceeding among waders, firing off little fusilades of exclama- 

 tions meanwhile. The turnstoues' disagreements were of the briefest, however, 

 slight ebullitions of temper rather than any actual belligerency. 



Belmmor. — S. F. Rathbiin has sent me the following notes on the 

 behavior of this species : 



The tide was just turning from flood, the time being about 3 p. m. On the 

 rocks of the jetty whose top at the edge t>f the beach was just above the water's 

 surface and at times submerged by incoming waves, was a small flock of black 

 turnstones numbering about 30. At first the birds would not allow a close 

 approach but as we slowly neared them would take wing and, then coming 

 together in close formation, circle in unison, rising and falling, close to the 

 water's surface to soon return and alight on the tops of the nearly submerged 

 rocks. It was a beautiful sight to see them in flight as then the black and 

 white of their plumage was strongly in contrast. After a short time the birds 

 allowed a much closer approach for on one occasion we stood within 20 feet of 

 the flock. As the tide receded much more of the surface of the rocks became 

 exposed, although at times the waves dashed completely over them, and when- 

 ever this occurred it forced the turnstones to take wing. Sometimes one of the 

 birds would be caught by an incoming wave and would then emerge in flight 

 from the water, scattering the spray in all directions. But the rapid recession 

 of the tide soon gave plenty of ground to search tox food and in this all the 

 birds became busily engaged. Some of the birds while so doing would climb 

 the very abrupt surface of the rocks, clinging to the moss, which adhered, while 

 examining with their bills the crevices of the rocks and also the moss for 

 crustaceans and minute molluscs. At times one or more would rest on the side 

 of a rock in perfect repose and evidence that a few were paired was seen by 

 the fact that two often persisted in remaining in company. 



One thing proved somewhat amusing to us, that although during the time 

 the birds had been feeding they were repeatedly drenched by spray from the 



