32 BIRDS OF AKKANSAS. 



frequently visits cotton fields, and it has been known to destroy the 



boll weevil. 



[Buff-breasted Sandpiper. Tryngites sUbruficoUis. 



The main migration route of this species is through the Mississippi Valley. It 

 has frequently been observed in Texas (April and August) and may be expected 

 to occur in Arkansas.] 



Spotted Sandpiper. Actitis maeularia. 



The spotted sandpiper, or "tip-up," is one of the most widely dis- 

 tributed and best known of the shorebirds, and is a fairly common 

 summer resident in the State. Arriving from the south in early April 

 and departing in October, it feeds chiefly along the shores of rivers, 

 creeks, and lakes, and nests in near-by fields. It has been noted in 

 the breeding season at Lake City, Helena, Womble, and Clinton. 



The food of this species consists largely of insects, including beetles, 

 flies, grasshoppers, and may flies. It takes some crawfish and many 

 aquatic insects, and has been known to visit gardens for cutworms 

 and other pests. 



Long-billed Curlew. Numenius americanvs. 



The "sickle-bill" is the largest of the North American shorebirds 

 and was formerly a common migrant in the Mississippi Valley, 

 breeding from Oklahoma north to southern Canada. It is now 

 comparatively scarce, except on the western plains. It has been 

 occasionally seen in western Missouri (Appleton City, April 3, 1906; 

 Jasper County, October 15, 1905),* and so may be expected to occur 

 in western Arkansas. Audubon speaks of taking a specimen of this 

 bird in Arkansas — the only record from the State.^ 



Eskimo Curlew. Numenius borealis. 



This curlew was formerly a common spring migrant in the Missis- 

 sippi Valley, but within the last 15 years has become nearly or quite 

 extinct. The spring flight appeared usually in Texas in March 

 and reached the latitude of Kansas by the middle of April. In the 

 fall the birds passed south along the Atlantic coast, reaching their 

 winter home in Argentina chiefly by a fhght over the ocean.' The 

 only record of the occurrence of this bird in Arkansas is furnished 

 by Prof. Harvey, who noted its arrival at Fayetteville March 31, 1883. 



Black-bellied Plover. Squatarola squatarola. 



The black-breasted plover, or beetlehead, is a rare or irregular 

 transient visitant. Its northward movement is in March and April 

 and its southward fhght from August to the end of October. Two 

 specimens were taken by Preble at Fort Smith September 19, 1892 — 

 the only record from the State. 



1 Widmann, Birds of Missouri, p. 75, 1907. ' Cooke, W. W., Bull. 35, Biol. Surv., pp. 74-76, 1910. 

 ^ Om. Biog., Ill, p. 240, 1835. 



