Family CHARADRIIDyE. Genus Totanus. 



Subfamily Totanin/e. 



YELLOW-LEGGED SANDPIPER. 



TOTANUS FLAVIPES— (G^we/z^). 

 Geographical Distribution. — British: One doubtful and 



two well authenticated occurrences establish the claim of this 

 species to rank as " British." They are as follows : Nottingham- 

 shire (i example), no exact date (1858?); Yorkshire (i very 

 doubtful example), October, 1858 ; Cornwall (i example), 

 September, 187 1. Foreign : Nearctic region ; Neotropical 

 region in winter. Breeds across the North American continent, 

 from the Yukon valley, in Alaska, in the west, to the Hudson 

 Bay Territory and Greenland in the east. Its southern breed- 

 ing range appears to extend to about lat. 44°. It passes 

 through the United States, the Bermudas, Bahamas, West Indies, 

 and 'Trinidad on migration, a few remaining to winter in the 

 Southern States, but the majority passing on to South America, 

 where it has been found at that season as far south as the coasts 

 of Buenos Ayres and Northern Patagonia. 



Allied Forms. — Totanus glareola, the Old World repre- 

 sentative of the Yellow-legged Sandpiper, a British species, and 

 dealt with fully in the preceding chapter. T. melanohucus, an 

 inhabitant of nearly the same range as the Yellow-legged Sand- 

 piper, but not extending quite so far north in summer, or so far 

 south in winter. Differs from both these allied forms in being 

 larger (wing 8'o to 7-4 inches, instead of 67 to 6t inches in 

 T. flavipes, and S"i to 4'5 inches in T. glareola). 



Time during which the Yellow-legged Sandpiper may 

 be taken. — August ist to March ist. 



