THE OOLOGIST'S JOURNAL. 



BARTRAMIAN SANDPIPER. 



This bird arrives from the South 

 about April 8 — have noted them 

 from April 1 to April 10 — and are 

 a very peculiar bird. They may 

 be seen in upland meadows, usu- 

 ally a pasture field where the grass 

 is comparatively short. I have 

 never noted their appearance in 

 grass over six inches high. They 

 prefer to alight where they can see 

 and hear what is going on around 

 them. I have frequently seen 

 them alight on the telegraph poles 

 along the railroad, and it is a com- 

 mon thing to seethe "long-legged, 

 long necked critter "purcbed upon 

 a fence stake. Their flight is com- 

 paratively feeble, being a rapid, 

 quivering, flapping of the wing. 

 They generally utter their peculiar 

 note (which I cannot describe) 

 while flying, and always utter one 

 just after lighting and nearly al- 

 ways just as they leave the ground. 

 I have searched meadow after 

 meadow where these birds were to 

 be seen in good numbers, but nev- 

 er, as yet, have I had the good for- 

 tune to find a nest unless the fe- 

 male was sitting upon it. Thus I 

 have came to believe, it is the male 

 which rises from some unknown 

 and unseen place in the sky or 

 from the ground, and comes with 

 his peculiar flight and alights just 

 in front of you, runs a short ways, 

 then squats down to make you be- 

 lieve he has alighted on the nest, 

 only to rise and fly a few rods 



farther on, and you may be sure 

 further from his nest. The nest is 

 sunken in the ground, sometimes 

 in a depression of some animal 

 track or a slight crevity made by 

 the birds themselves, and is simply 

 lined with fine grass and an occa- 

 sional feather from the parent 

 birds. The number of eggs laid in 

 this locality are four, although 

 sets of three are considered com- 

 plete. I have never saw a full 

 set which consisted of three eggs, 

 they usually begin nesting the last 

 week in April and all through 

 May. I once found a quail's nest 

 in a meadow, and while kneeling 

 down and packing Mrs. Bob 

 White's eggs, I chanced to set my 

 box down within one foot of a 

 Bartramian Sandpiper setting up- 

 on four very fresh eggs. The bird 

 of course, flew off when I set my 

 box down. I merely give this to ill- 

 ustrate how close they will stay to 

 their nest, even when the eggs are 

 fresh . The eggs are of a pale grey, 

 or buff, thickly spotted with yel- 

 lowish-brown spots, usually thicker 

 around the larger end. 



They average about 1.80 x 1.28 

 and are a very fine addition to any 

 collection. This Plover generaly 

 leaves for the Sunny South about 

 the middle of September. I once 

 saw one October 1. but this is very 

 late. Trusting the above may in- 

 terest a few, I will close for this 

 time. C. Byron Vandycook, 



Odin, 111. 



