148 



NE8T8 AlfD EGOS OF 



This plainly colored bird is well termed "wandering." No species of this family 

 traverse so much sea and coast during the changing seasons as this one. Elliot 

 ■says: Along the vast extent of the Pacific coast it goes from the Equator onward to 

 the Aleutian Islands in the far north, and to the interior of Alaska, where it prob- 

 ably breeds along the banks of the mighty Yukon. He states that the places where 

 this bird breeds may be well within the Arctic circle. 



[260.] RUFF. Pavoncella pugnax (Linn.) Geog. Dist. — Northern portions of 

 the Old World; occasionally straying to Eastern North America. 



The male of this species is known as the Ruff and the female as Reeve. It, is a 

 bird of wide distribution; found at various seasons of the year throughout Europe, 

 the northern parts of Africa, and in western Asia. Examples of this bird have been 

 taken in Eastern United States, as well as on Long Island and in various places In 

 New England. Dr. Jasper took a specimen November 10, 1872, at the Licking 



260. Ruff (From Brehm.) 



■County Reservoir, Ohio. It breeds more or less commonly in England and Scotland, 

 where the eggs are deposited during the first or second week in May. The Ruff is 

 about the size of the Bartramian Sandpiper, and it also resembles this bird in color. 

 But the most marked peculiarity of the species is the ruff-like growth of feathers 

 about the neck, from which it takes its name. There is an endless variety of 

 plumage in the birds, the males and females differing widely in this respect. As its 

 specific name, puffnax, implies the bird is of a pugnacious disposition, the males en- 

 gaging in aggressive combats during the breeding season. Their movements in 



