156 



OENITHOLOGIST 



[Vol. 13-No. 10 



leave the eggs, are able to run about on the 

 beach and when discovered will try and make 

 their escape by running away, but as soon as 

 they are overtaken will crouch ou the sand and 

 Vi'ill make no movement to get away, even 

 when taken in the hand. When the old birds 

 are nesting they seldom go out on to the flats to 

 feed at low tide, but toed on tiny marine ani- 

 mals washed up liy the surf and small insects 

 found on the beaches. As soon as the young 

 are full grown they are seen in small parties by 

 themselves, or in company with the Semipal- 

 mated Plover on the flats, the old birds, how- 

 ever, being usually in pairs. The old birds 

 connnence to leave about the middle of August ; 

 the young linger several weeks lunger and then 

 they too start on their journey south. They 

 I'un very swiftly and it is exceedingly hard 

 work to catch one wounded. They alight and 

 the very Instant their feet touch the beach 

 they are running along as fast as their propell- 

 ing muscles can move them, with their heads 

 drawn in close to the shoulders. The note of 

 this bird is a soft plaintive whistle, quite pro- 

 longed, which is shortened when quickly re- 

 peated. It is from these mournful notes that 

 it receives the appellation of '•Mourning Bird." 

 It was abundant in former years on the east 

 part of the Cape from Chatham to Province- 

 town, but there has been a great decrease 

 during the last Ave seasons. 



Turnstone, Aivnaria uiti'i-prcs (Linn.) "Chick- 

 en" Plover" ou Cape Cod. A connuon spring, 

 summer and autumn migrant. The first ones 

 arrive at the < 'ape in the spring about the first 

 of May, increasing until the 2-lth and a few re- 

 main until June 1.5th. I have seen individuals 

 as late as June 24th. The first comers on their 

 return from the north reach the Cape about 

 the last of July, increasing about the middle of 

 August by the arrival of the young birds. 

 They are the most common about the last of 

 August and remain tolerably common unlil late 

 in .September. It was, some twenty or thirty 

 years ago, abundant on the water side of the 

 Cape. In its handsome adult dress it is the 

 most conspicuous of any of the Limicohe that 

 visit our Cape shores. Although it is often 

 seen ou the sandy beaches, bars and flats, its 

 favorite haunts are low pebbly or rocky beaches, 

 mud flats, and the shores of salt creeks. In the 

 summer and autumn it retires to the high 

 beaches to rest during high tide, but in the 

 spring it goes on to the salt marshes like many 

 of our other birds. In the spring of l!S.S3 large 

 flocks came on to the t^uinset marshes at Brews- 

 ter in company with Black-bellied Plover. 



Their food consists of small crustaceans, horse- 

 foot eggs and soft marine animals, many of 

 which it finds by turning over small stones and 

 from this habit it derives its name of Turnstone. 

 This is one of the several shore birds that I 

 have found feeding about heaps of guano on 

 Monomoy Island. This species is not usually 

 shy and will alight to any of the shore bird de- 

 coys. Their note, a short, sharp whistle, re- 

 peated with great rapidity, is very hard to 

 imitate. They are generally seen in parties of 

 from two to six, but in the spring when flying 

 to the marshes, they congregate in flocks of 

 twelve or more individuals and fly very swiftly, 

 calling incessantly to each other. 



American Oyster-catcher, Jlminitnjius ostra- 

 Icpus, (Linn.) A rare visitor on the Cape coast. 

 I have one instance of its occurrence of late 

 j'ears, that of a specimen taken near Monomoy 

 Island during the latter part of April, 1885, as 

 recorded in the O. & O., Vol. 10, No. 10, 1885. 



Nesting of Peregrine Falcon. 



HV FHANK A. KATES. 



Two fine sets of eggs of the American Pere- 

 grine Falcon, {Falco perecirinus iiu'eius) were 

 found during the past season on Mount Tom, 

 Mass., by Mr. Geo. H. Avery. 



The first set was found April 15th, 1888, and 

 the clutch contained four eggs, seven-tenths in- 

 cubated. The nest was on a shelving rock, and 

 consisted of a little dirt, grass and pine needles, 

 but there were no sticks. The female was ou 

 the nest. 



No 1 : Ground color, creamy white, lightly 

 blotched on large end with light reddish brown, 

 gradually increasing in density toward small 

 end, where the ground color is entirely and 

 evenly obscured. This egg at the large end 

 bears considerable resemblance to some of the 

 darker specimens of the .Sparrow Hawk. Size 

 2.22x1.011. 



No. 2: Lightly blotched on small end, in- 

 creasing in density toward tlie large end, exactly 

 opposite of No. 1. General color slightly dark- 

 er; 2.30x1.68. 



No. 3: Similar to No. 1, but general color 

 darker than No. 2; 2.Ux 1.74. 



No. 4 : Is so deeply colored that the ground 

 color is entirely obscured, slightly paler at the 

 small end ; 2.12 x 1.67. 



Nos. 1 and 3 at the dark ends bear lighter 

 blotches, as if touched before the color was 

 dry. 



