THE HABITS OF THE WILSON'S PHALAROPE. 



{Phalaropus tricolor.') 



The family Phalaropodidae has a 

 very restricted membership, compris- 

 ing only three species, two of which are 

 found principally along the sea coasts of 

 the Northern Hemisphere, Wilson's 

 Phalarope, unlike its relatives, is dis- 

 tinctly an American bird. Its range is 

 chiefly inland, extending from the Mis- 

 sissippi Valley and Great Lake Region 

 westward and north into the British prov- 

 inces. 



Few persons aside from those who are 

 closely in touch with Nature can claim 

 even a passing acquaintance with this 

 beautiful creature, the Phalarope. Its 

 sofe, delicate plumage consists of various 

 shades of chestnut, black, gray and 

 white, giving an elegant and symmetrical 

 appearance to the bird, which is equaled 

 only by its graceful and gentle demeanor. 

 Fortunate is he who can survive an at- 

 tack from mosquitoes and venture among 

 the mossy bogs and quagmires to study 

 the Phalaropes in their native haunts. 

 After such a visit one can scarcely re- 

 frain from admiring their unsuspicious 

 and peaceful conduct. Well do I remem- 

 ber my initial experience with this little 

 shore bird. It is only one of the many 

 anecdotes which are jotted down in the 

 note book of the field ornithologist, but 

 it formed a vivid impression upon my 

 mind. In company with a friend I was 

 traversing a prairie marsh, near Chicago, 

 where bobolinks and meadow larks 

 abounded. Our destination was a dense 

 copse, resorted to annually bv warblers 

 and flycatchers durine the breeding sea- 

 son. We were admiring the aerial per- 

 formance of a marsh hawk, when we 

 were greeted on either side bv a male 

 Phalarope and a pair of Bartram's sand- 

 pipers. 



Both species were entirelv new to us 

 in the wild state, and so complete was 

 this surprise that we were unable to ac- 



count for their sudden and unexpected 

 appearance. The sandpipers hovered 

 about on quivering wings, continually 

 uttering their long drawn out plaintive 

 yet melodious whistle. 



The Phalarope displayed no less an 

 amount of uneasiness as he darted back 

 and forth in an undulating manner. His 

 voice was a feeble "onk, onk," and lacked 

 the distinctness of the Bartram's clear 

 whistle, which was audible at the distance 

 of half a mile. It was about the middle 

 of June, rather a late date for finding 

 eggs of either Phalarope or sandpiper, 

 and after an extensive search we aban- 

 doned the place, baffled in our attempts 

 to discover either nest or young. 



Several years later, while in North 

 Dakota, I formed a more extensive ac- 

 quaintance with Wilson's Phalarope, and 

 had the pleasure of meeting not only the 

 male, but his better half. Contrary to 

 the laws of Nature in general regarding 

 other families of the feathered congre- 

 gation, the Phalaropes possess peculiar 

 characteristics decidedly their own. The 

 female is superior in size and more bril- 

 liantly colored than her mate. She also 

 shirks the domestic tasks so far as her 

 sex permits, and the household responsi- 

 liilities are assumed by the male. Mrs. 

 Phalarope does the courting, displaying 

 her plumage to the best advantage before 

 the shy and indifferent male, who flies 

 from pond to pond. She follows per- 

 sistently and endeavors by a series of 

 bows and gesticulations to win his favor. 

 The male hollows out a small place in 

 a mossy bog or damp meadow, sufficient 

 to hold four eggs, which are ashy yellow 

 in color and densely marked and streaked 

 with rich brown and black. The eggs 

 average one and twenty-eight-hun- 

 dredths inches in length by ninetv-four- 

 hundredths of an inch in width, and are 

 usually very pointed. Some nests are 



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