BAY SNIPE. 23 



" The Great Marbled Godwit, or ' Marlln,' as our gunners 

 term it, arrives on the shores of Long Island in the month of 

 May ; it cannot be said to be an abundant species — still, we ob- 

 serve, it visits us regularly every spring and autumn. 



" It associates in flocks, and usually pSfeses its time on the 

 shoals and salt marshes ; it is exceedingly v\^atchful, and w^ill not 

 allow of near approach — but when any of their numbers are 

 wounded, their associates hover round them, uttering loud and 

 shrill cries. On such occasions they crowd together, offering 

 an excellent opportunity for the gunner to secure them. I have 

 shot it from various points in the South Bay, but have met with 

 far better success on * Pelican Bar,' which at low water is a 

 favorable place for procuring many other species of marine 

 birds. The flesh of the Marlin is tender and juicy, and is 

 prized as game," 



No. 8. The HuDSONiAN Godwit — Limosa Hudsonica ; Latham. 

 Vulgo, Ring-tailed Marlin. 



Limosa Hudsonica, Hudsonian Godwit, Sw. & Rich. Hudsonian Godwit, Nutt. 

 Mann. Hudsonian Godwit, Limosa Hudsonica, Aud. Orn. Biog. 



" Specific Character. — Bill blackish-brown, at base of lower 

 mandible yellow ; upper parts light-brown, marked with dull- 

 brown, and a few small white spots; neck all round brownish - 

 gray ; lower parts white, largely marked with ferruginous ; 

 basal part of tail feathers, and a band crossing the rump, white. 

 Adult with the bill slender, blackish-brown toward the tip, lighter 

 at the base, particularly at the base of the lower mandible ; a line 

 of brownish- white from the bill to the eye ; lower eyelid white ; 

 throat white, spotted with rust color; head and neck brownish- 

 gray; lower parts white, marked with large spots of ferrugi- 

 nous ; under tail coverts barred with brownish-black and ferru- 

 ginous ; tail brownish-black, with a white band at the base ; a 

 band over the rump ; tips of primary coverts and bases of quills 



