250 Nichols and Harper, Long Island Shore Birds. [jvly 



this emphatic, henhke cackle: kaouw, kaouiv, kaouw, kaouw. With each 

 yelp it bobs its head vigorously. 



Indeed, there are few of oui' shore birds that give such striking exhibi- 

 tions of head-bobbing. The Yellowlegs may express its first mild suspi- 

 cions by silent bobbing, but presently utters either its piercing whistle or 

 its cackling yelp with the forward thrust of the head, lending so much 

 energy to the movement that its whole body tilts with each bob. One can 

 not help smiling at the bird's comical appearance. As its alarm grows, it 

 bobs with increasing frequenc}', and finally springs into the air, redoubling 

 its cries as it goes. 



The dark upper parts, whitish tail-coverts and tail, and yellow legs are 

 conspicuous marks which this species shares equally with the Lesser Yellow- 

 legs. The bill of the Greater Yellowlegs is noticeably larger, but either 

 species may be distinguished in the field more readily by its notes than by 

 size. 



Totanus flavipes. Yellowlegs; Little Yellowleg; Summer 

 Yellowleg; Lesser Yellowlegs. — Rare in spring, but a very common 

 fall migrant, generally outnumbering the Greater Yellowlegs from the 

 middle of July to the middle of September. Recorded from April 23 

 (Orient, Latham) to June 1 (Rockaway, Braislin), and from July 7 (Eaton) 

 to October 28, 1912 (East Hampton, W. Helmuth). 



The Lesser Yellowlegs frequents the shallow pools in the salt marshes, 

 and is seen now and then on the mud-flats or on stranded layers of eel-grass 

 along the shores of coves and bays. It is also very partial to brackish 

 meadows with standing water; at such a favorable spot, on the inner beach 

 opposite Mastic, 50 to 100 birds kept congregating for days near the end 

 of August, 1913, despite persecution by gunners. 



It is a very gregarious bird, and pairs or small flocks are more frequently 

 observed than solitary individuals. It often associates with other species, 

 such as the Dowitcher, Robin Snipe, and Greater Yellowlegs. In compari- 

 son with the last-named species, it generally travels in larger bodies, and 

 is much less suspicious, stooling more readily and alighting closer to the 

 blind. Its flight is similar, though perhaps not quite so strong as that of 

 the larger bird, which at times covers distance with surprising speed. In 

 all its movements and attitudes — whether wading among the decoys 

 in water up to its thighs, bathing, running about over a mud-bar, standing 

 at rest with neck drawn in, scratching its bill with a foot, or curving its 

 slender wings in easy flight — the Lesser Yellowlegs is an exceedingly 

 graceful bird. 



In coming to the decoys, it may fly low and easil}', or shoot down from 

 a height; sometimes it whistles, and again it drops in without a sound. 

 When the stool are planted on extra long sticks in deep water, the Yellow- 

 legs will often flutter from one to the other, dipping its feet into the water 

 without being able to alight. The bird shown in Plate XII, fig. 4, acted 

 in such a manner until it happened to spy a little mud-lump, upon which 

 it settled, about 16 feet from our blind. From this vantage-point it looked 



