194 FEATHERED GAME 
his darting flight to a safe distance, alighting on 
some large stone, flirting his tail, balancing on 
tip-toe and bobbing his head, never for a second 
standing still or ceasing his endless dance. 
He is a brilliant conversationalist, (a trait 
common to most of his family), and is ready 
and willing to prove it, evidently feeling that he 
must make amends for his small size by being 
the noisiest member of his tribe. If suddenly 
driven to flight he makes the air resound with 
his sharp ‘‘Peet-Weet!’’—‘‘Peet-Weet!’’ and 
when he has alighted again he quavers out a 
long, tremulous ‘‘ W-e-e-e-e-t!’’ 
The Spotted Sandpiper arrives in New Eng- 
land from his winter quarters in the Southern 
States, Mexico, or the Tropics, in May and sets- 
up housekeeping soon after. He seems more 
accustomed to civilization than any other of 
the shorebirds and fears less the neighborhood 
of man. Probably the reason lies in the fact 
that the gunner seldom troubles him because 
of his small size and also because, since they do 
not gather into flocks as do the other sandpip- 
ers and smaller shorebirds, he can get but one 
at a shot, thus he thinks it a small return for 
his outlay of ammunition. With this freedom 
