AVOCETS AND STILTS. 



140 



white; a black strriik imsscs tliroiijili tlu' e}o to tlii' side of tin; neck and, 

 c-liaii;,'in<,' to rutburt-elR'stiiut, eoiiliiiueH down tlie widen oftlie imek and on tlio 

 Beaiuilars; ueek and uipper brcaxt wa.slied witli \m\v, ln'ow iiisii nit'ous ; ivst of 

 the under parts and iijijier tail-eovertw wliite. .h/. 6 /««'//«;//(»•.— I'liper jiartrt 

 fu.seous-hrown, bordered witli ^'rayisli brown; iijiper tail-eoverts, nape, and a 

 line over the eye wliite or wliitish ; sides of the neek and breast washed witli 

 rufous; rest of the under parts white. Adfi. in m'///^i v.— Ipjier parts irray, 

 niarjfined with white; upper tail-eovi-rts wliite; winjrs fuscous, tliiir eoviTts 

 nuiriL,'ined with Itutfy ; under i)arts white. Jut. — ''Top of head, baek, and 

 Beai>uh .'s dusky blaekish, the feathers distinetly Ixirdered witli Imtl'; wint,'- 

 coverts also l)ordered with i>ale liull or whitish ; ujjper taibeovcrts, sni>ereiliary 

 stripe, and lower parts white, the neek tin^red v.ith luilf " ( Hidirw.). i L., 

 S-Tf); W., 4-7r); Tar., 1-20; IJ., ]-2n. 9 L., icr.o ; \\.,r>-2r>; Tar., l-;!(): H., IS'.O. 



liaiiije. — " Temperate North Anieriea, ehietly in the interior, breediuir from 

 northern Illinois and Utah north wartl to the .Saskatchewan region; south in 

 winter to Brazil and I'ata.ironia" (A. (). U.). 



Lonj; Island, casual, Aujr., ^^e})t., and Oct. 



AW, a shallow tleiiressidii in .soft earth lined with a thin layer of fra;r- 

 nient.-i of grass. I:\i'Jk, three to four, ereuin-butf or butly white, heavily 

 blotched with deep chocolate, b'JS x -94. (See Nelson, Bull. Mutt. Orn. 

 Club, ii, 1»7'J, pp. 36-4;j.j 



"These birds are nire in the Eastern States, abundant in tlie Mis- 

 sissippi Valley, and quite connnnn westward witliin their raiifje. They 

 inhabit the marshes, swale.s, and edges of shallow ponds, feeding upon 

 minute snails and other simiU forms of life that abound in tlieir aipiatic 

 haunts, procuring tlio same ehielly by running over the moist ground 

 or wading in the short growths of water gra.>ises. They swim buoy- 

 antly, but seldom long at a time or far from the shore, and 1 never 

 saw one dive or nudve an attempt to do so, but, when frightened, pre- 

 fer to escape by flight, w ; b is strong, but at such times in a zigzag 

 and wavy manner, dropping back as soon as out of danger. A» a rule 

 they are not timid, and are easily approached. Their motions, whether 

 upon the land or water, are easy and pleasing, gracefully nodding the 

 head or picking from side to side as they go" ((io.ss). 



Family Recurvirostrid^". Avocets and Stilts. 



Tho eleven species comprising this family arc distril)uted throimh- 

 out the warmer parts of the world. They arc generally found in 

 flocks, and may be called Wading Snipe. They feed in shallow water, 

 wading to their heels, and when necessary swiiruning with ease. 



8S6. Recurvirostra americana dm t. AMianr.w Avockt. Ad. 

 in suihincr. — Head ami neek cinnarnon-rufous, back and tail white, scapidars 

 and primaries black ; middle eovert.s, ti[».s of the greater ones, an<l part, of «ee- 

 ondarics white; belly white, bill turned upward. Ad. in winter and Im.— 



I 



