Mar., 1921 THE PRIBILOF SANDPIPER 51 
contain many more individuals than are in existence on all three. Whether 
St. Lawrence Island supplies the extra number or not remains for future de- 
termination. 
Spring migration takes place the latter part of April and the first half of 
May. My earliest record for St. Paul Island is April 15 (1915) when a flock 
appeared at Northeast Point. The height of migration is a little later than 
that date and may usually be expected from the first to the fifteenth of May. 
Birds are almost invariably paired upon arrival. Very few spring flocks have 
been seen on the Pribilofs, and they do not tarry by the beaches but go directly 
to the upland nesting sites. It seems to be uncommon for more than the resi- 
dent population to land upon an island in spring. The birds seem to go di- 
rectly to the chosen breeding grounds wherever they may be. This fact is of 
wide application among the northern shore birds. Only rare stragglers of such: 
species as golden plovers, turnstones, and Pectoral and Sharp-tailed sandpipers 
stop at the Pribilofs on their way north, but large numbers of some of them 
come in fall. 
Fig. 13. AN AVERAGE SET OF EGGS OF THE 
PRIBILOF SANDPIPFR. SLIGHTLY LESS TOAN 
NATURAL SIZE. 
On St. George Island the high upland tundra has been chosen for breeding 
ground. Here, among the reindeer ‘‘mosses’’ and light gray, lichen covered 
rocks the sandpipers reign supreme in the fog. Some speculating may be in- 
dulged in to find a reason for so unusual a choice of locality. Elevations up to 
900 feet are sought. Perhaps they shun the sea coasts on account of the pres- 
ence there of large numbers of foxes. During all history this has been a 
greater fox island than either St. Paul or St. Matthew. On the latter island in 
June and July the birds may be found in large numbers around and back of 
the drift wood piles. If it were not for this fact being known we might sus- 
pect that on St. George the light gray tundra was selected for protective pur- 
poses, the birds themselves being distinguished chiefly by their light colors. 
St. Paul Island for some unaccountable reason is not chosen as a breeding 
