Sept. 1888.] 



AND OOLOGIST. 



131 



and down with a sort of jerk. Like most of our 

 other shore birds a marked decrease is noticed 

 in their ranks during tlie last five seasons. 



Yellow-legs, Tutminnjhicipc.i, (Gniel.) Sum- 

 mer fellow-legs on Cape Cod. A rare spring, 

 and abundant sunnner and autumn migrant. 

 I have never seen this bird in the spring and 

 although individuals have been seen on Cap<^ 

 Cod at this season, it is of very rare occurrence. 

 In the summer early migrants reach the Cape 

 by the l.jtli of .Inly and the (lights usually oc- 

 cur between August (ith and September 7th. 

 In looking over my notes I find tliat the largest 

 nights on Monomoy Island during the last 

 three seasons have taken place on the follow- 

 ing dates: .\ugust l.")tli, ISS.j: .\ugnst 30th, 

 1S8(!; September 7lh, 1887. None; are seen 

 after the middle or last of Septembei'. This 

 elegant wader so familiar to New Kugland 

 sportsmen that go for marsh birds, is called 

 Summer Yellow-legs on account of its being 

 numerous in the summer season ami to distin- 

 guish il from the preceding species. It fre- 

 i|uents nmd tlals, wet marches and meadows 

 and about the edges of iiuiddy ponds. Its fa- 

 vorite haunts, however, are salt marshes or 

 meadows, wheie duiing heavy sunnner rains 

 the water collects in large shallow pools. I 

 have never seen it on the high beaches or sand 

 flats. Its food and habits are similar to T. 

 melanoleurus with the exception that it is more 

 gregarious. Its notes are not as loud but 

 clearer and mellow with no long interval and 

 are rejx'aled with greater rapidity. None of 

 our shoie l)ir(ls are less suspicious or more easi- 

 ly decoyed, and after a fiock has been shot into 

 many times, if any of the number are left they 

 will return at the sound of a whistle, a poor 

 imitation of their notes, with outspread wings 

 and gracefully and confidingly alight among 

 the decoys in the spot where a number of other 

 relatives and friends had been slain a few mo- 

 ments before. Like many of our other shore 

 birds it is very fat in the summer and autumn. 



.Solitary .Sandpiper, Tulamis snIUiiiiiis, (Wils.) 

 A tolerably common spring, summer and au- 

 tumn migrant. It arrives from the south early 

 in May and specimens are occasionally seen in 

 .lune and .July. They are more often seen in 

 August and September on the Cape than in any 

 of the other months. By the 5th of October all 

 have taken their departure for their winter 

 home. VVliile with us in the spring and sum- 

 mer it is seen about the shores of secluded fresli 

 water ponds and streams, but in autunm migi'a- 

 tions it is frequently found about ])ools on fresh 

 marshes as well as on salt, near tlie shore. 



I have seen individuals on several dilTerent oc- 

 casions on Monomoy Island in company with 

 Yellow-legs about a meadow' that was covered 

 to a depth of several iuches with fresh water. 

 It exlubits but little shyness and generally will 

 allow a person to approach within a short dis- 

 tance before taking flight. 



Willet. Siiiii-iiliriiiin ncmijialmata, ((imel.) 

 Humility on Cape Cod. A tolerably eonnnon 

 si)riiig. and a common summer and autumn 

 migrant. It arrives in the spring between the 

 middle an<l last of May, and is seen singly or in 

 p.iirs as late as June l.Tth. In the return migra- 

 tion the first ones reach the Cap<> as early as 

 .Inly 8th and are couMm)n at intervals from the 

 Uth until the last of September. It is the most 

 common during the nnnith of August. It is 

 larger, stouter and its legs are shorter than 7'. 

 mclaiKihucus and it is more wary and clamo- 

 rous. Their food and haunts are sinular to their 

 above long-legged relative. They are restless and 

 suspicious and at the first intimation of dangi'r 

 will take flight, their notes of alarm usually 

 starting into the air all of the other shore birds 

 within hearing distance. The young birds in 

 the autumn, however, are often easily a])- 

 [jroached within shooting distance. This 

 species was once very abundant on the Cape in 

 the spring and autumn. 



Kutt, I'dooncdla pugnax, (Linn.) An acci- 

 dental visitor on Cape Cod. There is one in- 

 stance of its occurrence, a young male which 

 was shot by a Mr. Churchill at Chatham, Jlass., 

 Sep. 11th 1880, as recorded in Forest and Stream 

 of Oct. 7th, 1880 p. 18G. 



Bartramian Sandpiper, Barlramia lonijiamda, 

 (Bechst.) I plarid or Field Plover on Cape 

 Cod. A tolerably eonnnon spring and common 

 summer migrant. It arrives on the Cape in the 

 spring between April 12th and May lOth. On 

 their return from the north they reach the Cape 

 in small flocks about the last of July or first of 

 .\ugust. They are the most eonnnon from the 

 middle or last of August to Sei)teniber 12tli. 

 Atwr the fij-st week in October none are seen. 

 I thiidc a tew pair of these birds reside through 

 the entire summer, but as I am not positive I 

 have not included it as a resident. My ac- 

 quaintance with tills species is Hunted, but from 

 what I have been able to learn from old gun- 

 ners it was in former years abundant on the 

 Cape during the migrations. It well deserves 

 the name of Field or Upland Plover by which 

 it is most commonly kn(nvn, on account of its 

 freciuenting higli pastui-es and fields. Its food 

 consists of beetbw, crickets, grasslioppers and 

 other insects which impart to its flesh a savory 



