460 THE BIRDS OF HELIGOLAND 



parallels of latitude, through European and Asiatic Russia as far as 

 China and Japan. 



261. Whimbrel [KLEINER BRACHVOGEL]. 

 NUMENIUS PH^EOPUS, Latham. 1 



Heligolandish : Liitj Reintiiter = Little Rain-tooter. 



Numenius pJueopus. Naumaun, viii. 506. 



Whimbrel. Dresser, viii. 227. 



Courlis corlien. Temminck, Manuel, ii. 604, iv. 394. 



It would appear as though the Whimbrel visited Heligoland 

 during both migrations in much larger numbers than the pre- 

 ceding species ; at all events it is seen, especially in spring, in 

 much larger companies than the large Curlew. It is, however, 

 much more energetic than the Curlew in the utterance of its call- 

 note, so that, especially at night, one may easily be deceived in 

 judging of its numbers. But on some occasions, N. arquatus has 

 occurred in quantities which have never been approached by 

 N. phceopus even approximately ; as for instance, in the already- 

 mentioned night of the 19th 20th December 1878, as also in the 

 nights of the 13th 14th February 1876, and of 15th 16th March 

 1879, in both of which last two instances the migrant hosts con- 

 sisted of birds which had already commenced their spring passage, 

 but had been driven back by a return of wintry weather. From 

 mishaps of this kind the Whimbrel is exempt, because it never 

 starts on its spring migration before the weather has become really 

 warm, and variations of the kind referred to above are out of 

 the question. 



During the last half of April, and throughout May, in calm 

 warm weather, the birds migrate over this island at a considerable 

 altitude on an eastward line of flight. It is an especially 

 pleasing sight to see, late in the afternoon of one of these bright 

 warm days, flock after flock of these birds, all but out of the range 

 of vision, hastening at a tremendous speed towards their distant 

 home, while their varied call-notes a faint but yet clear and 

 distinctly audible ' hee-hee-hee hee-hee-hee-hee ' sound from 

 above like far-off' merry laughter. What a contrast with this it is 

 to hear, on bleak October and winter nights, the loud hoarse 

 ' Ou liiiik ' of the Curlew sounding from near and far through 

 the darkness in wild and almost unearthly cadence. 



In the time of its departure for the autumn migration, this 



1 Numeniux phatopus (Linn.). 



