426 The Water-fowl Family 



Commander islands in migration, in late May and early June, 

 and late July, August, and September. Ranges south on the 

 Pacific Coast of North America, occurring as far inland as 

 Hudson Bay and Crater Lake, Oregon; and winters from 

 Lower California south to the Galapagos, Hawaii, and islands 

 of Oceanica, and is found on the Hawaiian Islands throughout 

 the year. 



A bird of wide range, the wandering tattler 

 traverses the Pacific Coast from the tropics to the 

 Aleutian Islands and into the interior of Alaska, 

 along the watercourses. It breeds on the Pacific 

 islands within the Arctic circle, but the nest and 

 eggs have not been found. Usually alone, this 

 bird is sometimes seen in small flocks, and fre- 

 quents the rocky shores, running gracefully at 

 the edge of the water and feeding on the minute 

 shellfish and animal life among the seaweed. It 

 is gentle, and when approached runs ahead out 

 of reach or flies a short distance, uttering a shrill 

 note, then lighting to stop and gaze at its dis- 

 turber. By September they leave for their winter 

 homes, returning again in May to the snow and 

 ice of the North. 



RUFF 



(Pavoncella pugnax) 



Adult male in breeding plumage — Head, neck, and upper parts, 

 chestnut, barred with black, or buff and gray, barred with black ; 

 under parts, white with variations on jugulum and throat ; prk 

 maries, dark brown with greenish reflections; inner webs, 

 finely mottled ; outer three tail feathers, plain brown ; remainder, 

 transversely barred ; sides of rump, white ; feathers of the neck, 



