THE ESKIMO CUELEW SWENK. 329 



During this long flight, if the weather was fair and fine, little 

 was seen of the curlews from the time they left the Newfoundland 

 and Nova Scotia shores until they reached the Lesser Antilles, nearly 

 2,000 miles away. A few flocks would land for a few days on the 

 Bermuda Islands, according to Jardine,^ and if southerly storms pre- 

 vailed great numbers of them would land, but usually the bulk passed 

 on, and, flying both day and night, probably without landing, did not 

 land until the Lesser Antilles had been reached. Passing through 

 these islands, they continued along the eastern portion of Brazil to 

 Argentina, their winter home.^ Barrow^s reports them arriving at 

 Conception del Uruguay, in large flocks, September 9, 1880, and re- 

 maining until the middle of October. At Bahia Blanca they were seen 

 every day until late in February, but after March they had disap- 

 peared.- Most of the birds arrived in Argentina about the middle 

 of September and wintered in the campos region of that country, 

 mostly south of Buenos Aires.^ They occurred south of the Chabut 

 Valley, Patagonia, according to Durnford, and according to Abbott 

 a specimen was taken on the Falkland Islands.^ On the west coast 

 they were rare, but occurred in Chile south to Chiloe.^ 



But if easterly storms occurred, the birds would be driven out of 

 their line of flight, and great flocks would occur on the coast of New 

 England, and, less commonly, the shores of the middle and southern 

 States ; or, if westerly storms prevailed, they might be driven far out 

 to sea or even across the Atlantic, as there are several records of the 

 occurrence of the species on the British Isles in the fall. On Sep- 

 tember 6, 1885, one was recorded from Cairn Moncarn, near Stone- 

 haven, Kincardineshire,® two others were also taken on unknown 

 dates on the Aide at Aldeburgh, and at Woodbridge, both in Suf- 

 folk ; * a fourth was purchased in Dublin, in the flesh, October 21, 

 1870;^ another individual at Slains, Aberdeenshire, September 28, 

 1878 ; ^ and a sixth bird, a male, at Forest of Birse, Kincardineshire, 

 September 21, 1880.^ On May 26, 190G, an Eskimo curlew came on 

 shipboard about halfway between Ireland and Newfoundland (lat. 

 49° OG' N., long. 27° 28' W.) in a fatigued condition.^ 

 ! On the Pacific coast south of Alaska this bird was always very 

 rare. A lone specimen was shot over decoys at San Diego, Cal., Sep- 

 tember, 1883, and v^^as the only one seen.^ Mr. P. I. Hoagland, who 

 is well acquainted with this bird in Nebraska, states that a number 



1 Cooke, W. W. Bull. 35, Bureau of Biological Survey, pp. 74-7G, 1910. 



2 Barrows, W. B. Auk, 1, p. 316, 1884. 



3 Longmuir, Naturalist, p. 265, 1855, and Yarrell, British Birds, 2, p. 620. 



* Ilele, Notes about Aldeburgh, p. 177, and ilarting. Handbook of British Birds, p. 145. 

 ^ Blake, Knox, Zoologist, p. 2408, 1870. 



8 Sim, Scottish Naturalist, p. 36, 1879. 

 '' Harvie-Brown, Zoologist, p. 485, 1880. 



* Barbour, R. Auk, 23, p. 459, 1906. 

 »Holterhoff, G. Auk, 1, p. 393, 1884. 



