KNOT 311 
eaten. In summer this species has been found feeding 
on Saxifraga oppositifolia (Col. Feilden). 
Though often sluggish on foot, yet when searching for 
food the Knot displays as great activity as many other 
wading-birds. Large flocks usually gather along the edge 
of the’ ebbing tide “where the birds may be seen running 
to and fro in search of food, some members of the flock, 
now and again, taking short flights along the strand. 
Concerning the habits when feeding the late Mr. KH. 
Williams writes :—‘I observed a very tame immature 
Knot on August 12th, 1900, on the Dublin coast. I crept 
so near it that I could plainly see its butf-coloured breast 
and upper feathers edged with golden-yellow. The bird, 
which was alone, was exceedingly active, advancing and 
retreating as the wavelets broke on the silvery beach. 
Sometimes it hurried into the water, wading up to its 
breast, quickly darting back again to the beach to catch flies 
which swarmed on the decaying seaweed. I was surprised 
at the activity of the bird on foot.” 
Voice—A soft and rather muffled grunt, sounding like 
the syllables Anut or knot, may be heard in autumn and 
winter, both when the birds are on the wing and when 
feeding on the beach. 
Nest.—Until recently little was known about the nest 
and eges of the Knot. Its breeding-haunts, in the far north 
of Greenland and Arctic America, have been reached by 
several explorers, but from these countries specimens of the 
eggs do not appear to have been secured. ‘‘ The earlier 
explorers,” says Mr. Saunders, ‘‘found birds on Melville 
Peninsula, and abundantly on Melville Island, one of the 
North Georgian or Parry group; but no eggs are known to 
have been brought back. On July 30th, 1876, Col. Feilden, 
naturalist to H.M.S. ‘ Alert,’ obtained a male and three 
nestlings near a small lake on Grinnell Land in lat. 
82° 33’ N., while Mr. Chichester Hart, naturalist to H.M.S. 
‘ Discovery,’ had captured a brood of four in lat. 81° 44’ on 
the llth, and three more were taken next day: a beautiful 
group of the old and young being in the British Museum. 
A bird obtained by Gen. Greely near Discovery Harbour 
contained a hard-shelled egg ; the Peary Expedition of 1892 
found the species evidently breeding ; and a female “ with 
full-sized yolks” was shot at Point Barrow, Alaska, on 
July 11th.” 
In the Taimyr Peninsula, Walter found the Knot ‘“‘ by no 
