Wayne: Birds of South Carolina. 95 



or on dead leaves without any depression being made to receive 

 them. The first egg is laid from four to six days before the second 

 and is incubated immediately, with the result that when the 

 young are examined, one is generally found somewhat larger 

 than the other, having been hatched a few days sooner. Both 

 sexes incubate. 



The eggs are creamy white with a rosy tint when fresh. The 

 shell markings vary from pale blue to bluish gray surface mark- 

 ings, dark brown spots, and blotches. They measure 1.40x1-00. 



The Chuck-will 's-widow resembles so much in color the dead 

 leaves on which it is generally seen that it may be approached 

 within a few feet without being observed. When flushed it flies 

 a short distance, and utters a queer cry which resembles the sound 

 of "quak." If the eggs are handled, or even merely touched, 

 the birds, upon returning, remove them a short distance, each bird 

 taking an egg in its mouth. Audubon also mentions having 

 observed this habit. They then continue sitting on them until 

 hatched, but if the eggs are taken away, they will lay again, and 

 I have known a female to lay four sets of eggs and finally rear its 

 brood from the last set, which I left undisturbed. If not mo- 

 lested the birds appear to raise only one brood in a season. 



The young when hatched are covered with down. I examined 

 the stomachs of two young which were two days old and each 

 contained a beetle an inch in length. The male bird during the 

 breeding season utters the notes which have given him his name 

 during the entire night, commencing shortly before sunset. On 

 moonlight nights the noise is almost continuous, lasting fre- 

 quently until daylight. Occasionally, the note is heard during 

 the day, and sometimes when it is raining. As soon as the young 

 are hatched the note ceases entirely, and is only heard again at 

 the time of the fall migration, which is towards the end of Septem- 

 ber, my latest date being September 28. 



I recorded in Science Record 1 having observed a specimen of 

 this species in January. This was an error, for the bird I saw was 

 undoubtedly a Whip-poor-will (A . vociferus) . 



169. Antrostomus vociferus (Wils.). Whip-poor-will. 



Since the capture of this species on February 7, 1892, and 

 again on January 6, 1893, which I recorded in the Auk, 2 the 



1 II, No. 4, Feb. 15, 1884. 2 IX, 1892, 201; and X, 1893, 205. 



