SNIPES, SANDPIPERS, ETC. 165 



Few birds are flying ; lulled by the lap, lap of the water, I have 

 almost fallen asleep, when from far up in the gray sky comes a soft, 

 flutelike whistle, when, wheu-wheu-wheu-wheu, when, wheu-wheu. I re- 

 spond quickly, and, lying on my back, look eagerly upward. Not a 

 bird can be seen, but the questioning call grows stronger and is re- 

 peated more frequently. Finally I distinguish five or six black points 

 sailing in narrow circles so high that I can scarcely believe they are the 

 birds I hear. But no bar or shoal breaks the sound waves. The birds 

 grown larger and on widening circles sweep earthward. Their soft 

 whistle has a plaintive tone ; their long bills turn inquiringly from 

 side to side. The stolid decoys give no response, they repel rather 

 than encourage, but the whistling continues, and with murmured 

 notes of interrogation the deluded birds wheel over them, to find too 

 late that they have blundered. 



255. Totanus tLa^vipes (Gmel). Yellow-legs; Summer Yellow- 

 legs. Ad. in summer. — Upper parts generally brownish gray, the head and 

 neck streaked with black and white, the back, scapulars, and wing-coverts 

 with sometimes black centers, spotted or tipped with whitish or brownish 

 gray ; upper tail-coverts white, more or less barred with black, tail varying 

 from white to brownish gray, with numerous black or blackish cross-bars ; 

 breast heavily spotted or streaked and sides barred with black ; belly white, 

 legs yellow. Winter plumage.— Similar, but upper parts brownish gray, the 

 sides of the feathers with whitish spots ; tail-bars grayish ; breast lightly 

 streaked with ashy. L., 10-75 ; W., 6-40 ; Tar., 2-05 ; B., 1-40. 



Remarks.— This bird closely resembles the Greater Yellow-legs in color, 

 but may always be distinguished by its smaller size. 



^a?i^e.— North America, breeding chiefly in the interior from Minnesota, 

 northern Illinois, Ontario County, N. Y., northward to the arctic regions; 

 winters from the Gulf States to Patagonia. 



Washington, rather common T. V., Apl. to May 15 ; Aug. to Nov. Long 

 Island, T. V., very rare in spring, abundant in fall ; July 15 to Oct. 1, Sing 

 Sing, tolerably common T. V. in fall ; Aug. 25 to^ct. 5. Cambridge, rare in 

 May ; sometimes ^common in Aug. and early Sept. 



J^f/(/s, three to four, buffy (variable as to shade), distinctly (sometimes 

 broadly) spotted or blotched with dark madder- or vandyke-brown and pur- 

 plish gray, 1-69 x 1*15 (Ridgw.). 



This species closely resembles the preceding in notes, habits, and 

 choice of haunts. It decoys, however, more easily, and, generally 

 speaking, is more common. 



The Green-shank (253. Totanus nehularius) is an Old- World species, of 

 which three specimens were taken by Audubon, May 28, 1832, near Cape 

 Sable, Florida. It resembles our Greater Yellow-legs, but dilfers chiefly in 

 having the lower back and rump white. 



The Green Sandpiper {257. Totanus ocTiropus) is an Old-World species 

 which has been recorded once from Nova Scotia. It resembles our Solitary 



