160 



NESTS AND EGGS OF 



erally in pairs, bttt in some instances a large number are found nesting in on* 

 place. Four eggs are usually laid in some cavity in the sand or shingle. Nests haye 

 been found on the top of rocks, ten to fifteen feet above the ground. The eggs are 

 •f a dull creamy bnff, spotted and blotched with brownish-black, generally over the 

 entire egg. Six eggs in my cabinet from England measure 2.15x1.57, 2.35x1.53, 2.16x 

 1.56, 2.17x1.54, 2.32x1.50, 2.19x1.56. 



.-.'Vtt-lvi 





IBMIM - ;': V M^kI^^ 1: 





♦ ♦ European Oyster-catcher, similar to the American Oyster-catcher. (From Brebm.) 



286. AMERICAN OYSTER-CATCHER. Bmmatopus palliatus Temm. Geog. 

 Dist.— Sea coasts America from Nova Scotia and Southern California, south to 

 Patagonia. 



The brownish-backed Oyster-catcher breeds along the Atlantic coast from New 

 Jersey southward, where it becomes more common. It breeds abundantly, but ir- 

 regularly, in different localities. There are extensive breeding resorts along the 

 coast of Virginia. On Cobb's Island it was formerly quite common during the 

 breeding season, where now only a few pairs are said to be found nesting. It is 

 common along the coast of Florida, nesting on the beaches and depositing three, 

 sometimes only two, eggs. The American Oyster-catcher is an abundant resident 

 throughout the Bahamas, nesting wherever there are sandy beaches. It has been 

 foimd breeding in Galveston Bay, Texas, in June, and on islands at the mouth of the 

 Rio Grande. The eggs are creamy or white, spotted and blotched irregularly with 

 varying shades of brown; rather oval in shape; sizes range from 2.12 to 2.30 in 

 length by 1.50 to 1.62 in breadth. Six eggs from the coast of Virginia measure 2.22x 

 . 1.57, 2.23x1.58, 2.19x1.52, 2.15x1.52, 2.25x1.60, 2.21x1.57. Mr. Walter Hoxie, In the 



