ESQUIMAUX CURLEW 221 



this territory, surely in the northern half, this 

 is the most numerous species of curlew. In the 

 cold weather it joins the rest of its family in 

 the warm climates, sometimes going down into 

 the pampas of Argentina for winter quarters. 



It nests on the i^lains of the interior, the 

 number of eggs commonly four, greenish gray 

 in color, with mottlings of varying hue, though 

 in most cases brown. 



Inland it lives much like and is often found 

 with the upland plover and the golden plover in 

 their prairie ranges, but to the New England 

 gunner it is only a chance acquaintance met on 

 the sea ledges, the marshes alongshore and on 

 the outer islands. They are fairly regular 

 summer visitors, both this species and the Hud- 

 sonian curlew, to those grassy solitudes, de- 

 serted islands far off shore, where sea fowl and 

 shore birds are seldom disturbed by any crea- 

 ture more dangerous than the sheep which are 

 pastured there. 



Though quite wary they will decoy well if the 

 sportsman is hidden and can imitate their call 

 passably. The flesh of this and all other mem- 

 bers of the family is of good flavor and is in 

 good condition at all seasons of the year. The 



