(/41'' 



ORNITHOLOGIST 



— AND — 



OOLOGIST. 



$1.00 per 

 Aiinuui. 



I'UBLISIIED BY FRANK B. WEBSTER. 

 Establislieil, Maicb, IST.'i. 



Single Copy 

 10 Cents. 



VOL. XIII. BOSTON, MASS., SEPTEMBER, 1888. 



No. 9. 



The Shore Birds of Cape Cod. 



BV JOHN C. CAIIODN. 



(Continued.) 



Rcd-b:u!ked Sim(li)iii(M-, Triii'in nl/iiiKt pacifica 

 (Coues.) Crooked-billcil, or VM Snipe on 

 Cape Cod. A common si>riiig mmiI alminlant 

 autumn mionint. It usually arrives I he last 

 week in A))ril, and by the l.'Uli nf Max all have 

 passed Cape Cod on tlieir northern Journey. 

 In the autumn, the migrants for the south 

 re.-ioh the Cape about Sept. 2;!, beconnnK abuii- 

 liant about Sept. liO. and remaining so through 

 tlie greater part of Oetober. A few remain 

 late into November. In the spring tliey are in 

 pairs or small flocks, and are quite shy, but in 

 the autumn they are apparently without fear, 

 and large numbers are shot by tyro gunners 

 who are not successful with the larger and 

 more wary birds. They feed on the sand Hats, 

 spits, and low beaches, in Hocks by themselves, 

 or in company w-ith sanderlings and sand- 

 pipei-s. Their food consists of sand lleas, 

 marine animals, and sliell lish. I have seen 

 them at the fish works on Monomoy Island 

 eagerly devouring flies and insects that were 

 very numerous about the guano spread out on 

 the sand. Thi'v go on to the high beach to 

 stop during high tide. They stop witli us in 

 the autumn later than any of the other Lbni- 

 colai. 



Curlew Sandpiper, Triiii/dfci-fuijinca (Hriinn.) 

 Tills is a very rare straggler on our Cape coast. 

 Ten authentic instances of the occurrence of 

 the Curlew Sandpiper in New England are 

 given in New England Bird Life, I'art II, and 

 one of these is of a specimen that was shot ou 

 Cape Cod about the lOtli of May, 1878. 



Semipalmatcd Sandpiper, EreiineU-s ptisillus 

 (Linn.) Sandidper, or I'eep on Cape Cod. An 

 abuiidant spring, summer and autumn migrant. 

 The tirst comers in the spring reach .Monomoy 

 Island about May 1, becoming conjuion the 



12th, abundant the 16th, and last seen June 25. 

 On return migration, tli(! tirst ones reach us as 

 early as .luly I, becoming common ,luly 15, and 

 abundant through August. I'sually by the 

 last of September all have departed for the 

 south. This bird is more of a beach peep than 

 its little cousin, T. mimUilld, with wiioni it 

 often associates. They frequent sand flats, 

 bars, i)ebbly beaches and about the sedge 

 grass that is found on portions of the flats. 

 They are sometimes seen on the marshes, and 

 at high tide they retire to the high beaches to 

 rest until the tide begins to ebb. It is interest- 

 ing and sometimes amusing to watch them as 

 they run about on the sand flats industriously 

 searching for some tiny flea, worm or mollusk 

 to satisfy their capricious appetite. One little 

 fellow finds a choice morsel, but before he has 

 time to devour it, he is beset by a number of 

 his companions all eager to have a share in the 

 feast, and the wrangle is finally ended by the 

 last comer seizing the prize, and running away 

 a few yards hastily swallows it before the 

 views of his expectant companions. 



Sandcrling, Calidris are nana., (Linn.) "Gr.ay 

 back," "Whiting," "Sandpiper," or more often 

 "Bull-peep" ou Cape Cod. An abundant sjjring, 

 summer and autumn migrant. Tlie first ar- 

 rivals of this handsome "beach bird" in the 

 spring are seen on Capo Cod about the last 

 week in April or first in May, the full force 

 passing during the second and third weeks in 

 May. Stragglers are seen as late as .Tune 24th. 

 In the suuuner the first ones migrating south, 

 which are adults, reach the Cape as early as 

 July Gth, becoming common by the 17th and 

 abundant by the 25th. The young commence 

 to arrive the first week in August, and by the 

 middle or last of the mouth uo adults are seen. 

 They are abundant at intervals during Septem- 

 ber and October, a few remaining late into No- 

 vember and iu<lividuals have been seen in De- 

 cember. In the spring they are seen in pairs or 

 small Hocks of from six to twelve and evince 



Copyright, 1888, by F. H. CARPENTER and F. B. Webster. 



