﻿BIRDS 
  OF 
  NEW 
  YORK 
  347 
  

  

  light 
  A-ellow 
  and 
  whitish; 
  under 
  parts 
  dingy 
  whitish 
  dimly 
  barred 
  with 
  

   brownish 
  gray. 
  

  

  Length 
  lo-ii 
  inches; 
  extent 
  22-23; 
  wing 
  6.85-7.4; 
  tail 
  3; 
  tarsus 
  1.75; 
  

   middle 
  toe 
  and 
  claw 
  1.2 
  ; 
  bill 
  .8-1. 
  

  

  Range 
  and 
  migration. 
  This 
  species 
  breeds 
  in 
  arctic 
  America 
  and 
  

   winters 
  from 
  the 
  gulf 
  coast 
  to 
  Patagonia, 
  being 
  a 
  representative 
  of 
  the 
  

   several 
  shore 
  birds 
  which 
  migrate 
  down 
  the 
  Atlantic 
  coast 
  in 
  autumn 
  and 
  

   return 
  to 
  their 
  arctic 
  breeding 
  grounds 
  by 
  way 
  of 
  the 
  Mississippi 
  valley, 
  

   undoubtedly 
  as 
  Professor 
  Cooke 
  believes, 
  because 
  the 
  Labrador 
  coast 
  is 
  

   teeming 
  with 
  food 
  in 
  the 
  fall, 
  but 
  is 
  icebound 
  in 
  the 
  spring, 
  while 
  the 
  reverse 
  

   is 
  true 
  of 
  the 
  inland 
  route. 
  It 
  is 
  rare 
  everywhere 
  in 
  New 
  York 
  during 
  the 
  

   spring 
  migrations, 
  but 
  Giraud 
  speaks 
  of 
  it 
  as 
  arriving 
  on 
  Long 
  Island 
  in 
  

   the 
  latter 
  part 
  of 
  April. 
  Langille, 
  likewise 
  writes 
  of 
  it 
  as 
  arriving 
  in 
  western 
  

   New 
  York 
  the 
  latter 
  part 
  of 
  April 
  and 
  soon 
  passing 
  on 
  to 
  the 
  north. 
  The 
  

   only 
  authentic 
  records 
  for 
  recent 
  years, 
  I 
  find 
  in 
  Mr 
  Butcher's 
  Notes; 
  a 
  

   single 
  bird 
  on 
  Shinnecock 
  bay, 
  April 
  7,1882, 
  and 
  2 
  birds 
  reported 
  by 
  Mr 
  

   Hendrickson, 
  May 
  10, 
  1885. 
  During 
  the 
  fall 
  it 
  was, 
  until 
  recently, 
  common 
  

   locally 
  on 
  eastern 
  Long 
  Island 
  as 
  well 
  as 
  along 
  the 
  St 
  Lawrence, 
  Lake 
  

   Champlain, 
  Lake 
  Ontario 
  and 
  Lake 
  Erie, 
  especially 
  near 
  the 
  mouth 
  of 
  

   Niagara 
  river 
  on 
  the 
  plains 
  some 
  distance 
  back 
  from 
  the 
  lake, 
  where 
  it 
  

   occurred 
  in 
  flocks 
  of 
  hundreds 
  the 
  latter 
  part 
  of 
  August 
  and 
  early 
  September 
  

   and 
  was 
  killed 
  in 
  large 
  numbers. 
  It 
  is 
  evident 
  from 
  Mr 
  Butcher's 
  Notes 
  

   that 
  as 
  early 
  as 
  1882 
  this 
  species 
  had 
  greatly 
  decreased 
  in 
  numbers 
  on 
  

   Long 
  Island. 
  In 
  1886 
  several 
  observers 
  reported 
  flights 
  on 
  August 
  24 
  and 
  

   25, 
  one 
  observer 
  seeing 
  five 
  flocks. 
  In 
  1887 
  Mr 
  Hendrickson 
  reported 
  25 
  

   on 
  September 
  12. 
  On 
  September 
  ist, 
  1888, 
  a 
  large 
  flight 
  was 
  reported 
  at 
  

   Oakdale, 
  L. 
  I. 
  [see 
  Forest 
  and 
  Stream, 
  31. 
  No. 
  8j. 
  This 
  flight 
  was 
  accom- 
  

   panied 
  by 
  a 
  strong 
  southwest 
  wind. 
  On 
  September 
  g, 
  1889, 
  Mr 
  Perkins 
  

   reported, 
  "a 
  big 
  bunch 
  of 
  greenbacks 
  going 
  west 
  very 
  high." 
  August 
  3d, 
  

   1893, 
  several 
  bunches 
  of 
  greenbacks 
  were 
  reported 
  along 
  the 
  coast. 
  These 
  

   flights 
  were 
  often 
  preceded 
  by 
  northeast 
  winds. 
  The 
  fall 
  migration 
  begins 
  

   from 
  the 
  ist 
  to 
  the 
  loth 
  of 
  August, 
  rarely 
  as 
  late 
  as 
  the 
  24th, 
  and 
  ends 
  

   about 
  the 
  middle 
  of 
  October, 
  a 
  few 
  rem.aining 
  som^etimes 
  as 
  late 
  as 
  November 
  

  

  