FOLLOWING THE WATER-BIRDS 161 



remnant and secure its increase back to normal abun- 

 dance. 



To mention a few of the shore-birds which one is 

 likely to meet, the most numerous are some of the 

 sandpipers, especially the little semipalmated sand- 

 piper, which one will see in flocks on beaches and flats. 

 The least sandpiper resorts more to marshes, but both 

 go together at times. They are hard to tell apart at 

 a distance, but the latter is smaller, browner, and 

 has no partial webs between the toes. With these are 

 often a few white-rumped sandpipers, distinguished 

 by what the name implies. The sanderling is a larger 

 species, quite pale in color, but not as much so as the 

 little piping plover which races along the beach, al- 

 most the color of the sand. All plovers, too, are 

 stouter in build. The turnstone prefers stony shores. 



The knot is the largest sandpiper, a beautiful bird 

 with pencilled markings on its back. The pectoral 

 sandpiper, distinguished by a heavily marked breast 

 from the sanderling, though of the same size, prefers 

 the salt marsh, as does the dowitcher, which latter 

 will attract instant attention by its very long straight 

 bill. The two species of yellow-legs are also birds of 

 the marsh. The main difference between them is one 

 of size, and both have long yellow legs and show a 

 white rump as they fly. Their clear piping calls, con- 

 sisting of three or four quickly-repeated, resounding 

 whistles, are very striking and easily imitated, by do- 

 ing which the birds are very easily decoyed. The 



