126 



AMERICAN AVOSET. 

 RECUBVIMOSTRA AMERICANA. 

 [Plate LXIIL— Fig. 2.] 



Jirct. Zool. JVo. 421.— Lath, Syn. t. 3, p. 295, JV'o. 2. — Peaxe's Museum^ JVo. 4250. 



THIS speciesj from its perpetual clamour and flippancy of 

 tongue, is called by the inhabitants of Cape May, the Lawyer; the 

 comparison, however, reaches no farther; for our Lawyer is simple, 

 timid, and perfectly inoffensive. 



In describing the Long-legged Avoset of this volume, the 

 similarity between that and the present was taken notice of. This 

 resemblance extends to every thing but their color. I found both 

 these birds associated together on the salt marshes of New Jersey, 

 on the twentieth of May. They were then breeding. Individuals 

 of the present species were few in respect to the other. They flew 

 around the shallow pools exactly in the manner of the Long-legs, 

 uttering the like sharp note of click click click^ alighting on the 

 marsh or in the water indiscriminately, fluttering their loose wings, 

 and shaking their half bent legs, as if ready to tumble over, keep- 

 ing up a continual yelping note. They were, however, rather 

 more shy, and kept at a greater distance. One which I wounded 

 attempted repeatedly to dive; but the water was too shallow to 

 permit him to do this with facility. The nest was built among the 

 thick tufts of grass, at a small distance from one of these pools. It 

 was composed of small twigs of a sea side shrub, dry grass, sea 

 weed, &c., raised to the height of several inches. The eggs were 

 four, of a dull olive color, marked with large irregular blotches of 

 black, and with others of a fainter tint. 



