46 THE CONDOR Vol. XXIV 
habits furnish enough material for a separate paper and I ean not go into their 
ways here. Their nests were arranged in a row following the line of high 
water flotsam, as in the Least Tern, and consisted in a simple scoop in the 
earth made by the many wigeglings of the bird when sitting. 
On May 16 I found a nest of the Avocet (Recurvirostra americana) with 
four eges ready to hateh, and this constitutes one of the most interesting 
breeding records for this group of islands. It has been reported as breeding 
onee at Corpus Christi long ago; but Gulf Coast records are very searee, for 
this is fully 500 miles south of the normal southern limit. Only a single pair 
of birds was seen and the nest was found by watching the supposed female re- 
turn to the nest following a great broken-wing demonstration, which indicated 
plainly the presence of eggs or young birds. Mr. Camp took a second set of 
Avocet eggs on June 5, and I assume that they were a second laying of the 
same pair of birds. 
Fig. 22. Tur BLACK SKIMMERS FLEW UP AND DOWN THE BEACH AS LONG AS WE 
WERE NEAR THEIR NESTS, . 
Wilson Plovers (Ochthodromus wilsonius) were fairly common, but though 
evidently breeding, only one nest with two eggs was found. Mr. Kirn got this 
set. The nest was fairly well hidden under salt grass and located well inland 
trom the shore of the northern mud shoal. Western Willets (Catoptrophorus 
semipalmatus inornatus) were numerous but no nests could be located. One 
brood of small young was found. Long-billed Curlews (Numenius americanus) 
were common on the mainland but not much in evidence on these small islands. 
Other water birds which visited the islands but which were not breeding there 
were the Roseate Spoonbill (Ajaia ajaja), Mexican Cormorant (Phalacrocorax 
vigua mexicanus), Reddish Egret (Dichromanassa rufescens), Louisiana Heron 
(Hydranassa tricolor ruficollis), Ward Heron (Ardea herodias wardi), and 
many small sandpipers which were undoubtedly migrants. | 
The only land bird in evidence was the Texas Horned Lark (Olocoris alpes- 
tris giraudi). This species evidently never strays out of sight of salt water 
