236 SCOLOPACID^ : SNIPE, ETC. 



destroyed under such circumstances, provided the 

 ornithologist can lay aside his scruples and steel himself 

 against sympathy. 



GREATER TATTLER; GREATER YELLOW- 

 LEGS; STONE SNIPE. 



TOTANUS MELANOLEUCUS (Gm.) Vieill. 



Chars. Bill slender, longer than head, straight or slightly bent 

 upward, black or blackish ; legs very long, yellow. Above 

 blackish, more or less ashy according to season, everywhere 

 speckled with whitish, in a series of indentations along each 

 feather. A slight white superciliary line ; upper tail-coverts 

 mostly white. Under parts white, the jugulum, breast, and sides 

 with dark streaks or bars. Length, 13.50; extent, 14.00; wing 

 over 7.00, nearer 8.00 ; tail, 3.00 or more ; bill, 2.00 or more. 



This large and elegant Tattler, well-known to gun- 

 ners, is a common species in New England during the 



FIG. 54. HEAD AND FOOT OF GREATER TATTLER. Natural size. 



migrations. A few are also observed to linger through 

 the summer, but we have no evidence that the bird ever 

 breeds with us. It is seen chiefly in May and Septem- 



