132 BIRDS OF N"ORTH CAROLINA 



until September. At Pea Island it winters in large flocks (Bishop), and it prob- 

 ably does this elsewhere along the whole of our coast-line. In the latter part of 

 the spring migration many may be seen well advanced in their nuptial plumage, 

 the black breast and red back combining to make a striking appearance. It is far 

 from wild, and indeed it is usually much more easily approached than most of the 

 members of this group. We have no record of its occurrence inland. 



FIG. 94. RED-BACKED SANDPIPEE. 



Genus Ereunetes (Illig.) 



Comprises two species of small sandpipers, resembling the Least Sandpiper in 

 general appearance, but having evident webs between the front toes at their base. 

 Both species occur on our coast. 



KEY TO SPECIES 



1. Chiefly grayish brown above. Bill shorter (culmen .75 or less in male, less than 1 inch in 



female). Semipalmated Sandpiper. 

 1. Chiefly rusty above. Bill longer (culmen more than .75 in male, 1 inch or more in female). 



Western Sandpiper. 



112. Ereunetes pusillus (Linn.}. SEMIPALMATED SANDPIPER. 



Ads. in summer. Upperparts black or fuscous, margined with brownish gray and a small 

 amount of rufous; rump grayish brown; upper tail-coverts blackish; tail-feathers brownish 

 gray, central ones darkest; breast streaked or spotted with blackish. Juv. Similar, but upper- 

 parts and wing-coverts blackish, with rounded rufous or buffy tips to the feathers; breast 

 unstreaked, tinted with buffy. Ads. and Juv. in winter. Upperparts brownish gray, with 

 darker shaft streaks; upper tail-coverts darker; underparts white, sometimes with faint streaks 

 on the breast. L., 6.30; W., 3.75; Tar., .75; B., .65-.80. 



Remarks. The small size of this and the next species prevents their being confused with 

 any other except Pisobia minutilla, from which they may always be known by then- partially 

 webbed toes. (Chap., Birds ofE.N.A.) 



Range. Breeds far north; winters from Georgia to Patagonia. 



Range in North Carolina. Coastal region during the migrations; occasionally inland. 



These birds are very numerous on the coast during the migrations and are gen- 

 erally found in company with Least Sandpipers. Daily collections of "sea-chickens" 

 for a week, in the neighborhood of Southport, during May, 1909, showed a pro- 

 portion of about one Semipalmated to ten Least Sandpipers, the two species being 

 often indistinguishable until collected. On the Cape Hatteras beaches, in the 



