276 
PRiECOCIAL GRALLATORES — LIMICOLR3. 
met with this bird in considerable numbers as far north as latitude 71° 54'; and at 
Fort York he has known it to be shot as late as the latter part of October. At this 
time it is in its greatest perfection, and is said to be delicious eating. 
It is not noted in the ninth volume of the “ Pacific Railroad Report ” as occurring 
west of the Missouri, yet Mr. -J. A. Allen found it in considerable numbers about the 
lagoons of Eastern Kansas in the earlier part of May, and afterward in August ; he 
also saw it at Lake Pass, in Colorado, and a few were found in September in the 
Valley of Great Salt Lake. It was not noticed by Mr. Ridgway in Utah or Nevada; 
but it has been found very abundant in August and September throughout Dakota 
and Montana, where it was invariably seen associating with the melcmoleuca. Both 
species are there the most unsuspecting of the Waders, so that they may be approached 
without the slightest difficulty. Mr. L. Belding, in the winter of 1878-1879, procured 
a specimen on the coast of California. 
In the Valley of the Mississippi this species is a regular migrant both in the 
spring and in the fall. It is much more abundant in its autumnal movement, and 
much more common, than the melcmoleuca, coming later and departing earlier than that 
species. None remain to breed near Lake Ivoskonong, where, in the fall, they again 
become very abundant. 
It was met with at Fort Resolution from May 5tli to the 14tli, in 1860, by Mr. R. 
Kennicott ; on the Yukon River, in June, by Mr. Lockhart; at Fort Simpson, from 
May 15th to the 29th, by Mr..B. R. Ross ; at Big Island by Mr. Reid ; and wasTound 
in great abundance by Mr. MacFarlane at Fort Anderson, on Anderson River, at 
Horton River, Rendezvous Lake, etc. 
On the Atlantic coast if begins to appear, in its migrations southward, in July, 
and its movements continue through August. It returns in the spring, but comes as 
late as May 15. In Massachusetts Mr. William Brewster has taken it from July 15 
to September 1, and has noted its passing north occasionally as early as the first part 
of May. A large flock was observed by Mr. Frank B. Tileston near Boston, May 
3, 1875. It is quite common near Calais in both these migrations. 
On Long Island, according to Giraud, and also on the coast of New Jersey, this 
species arrives in the early part of May. It is said to associate in flocks, and to fre- 
quent the muddy flats which are left bare at the recess of the tide. At high water it 
resorts to the ponds on the beaches and meadows, where it collects its food, which 
consists of small shellfish, worms, and insects. Occasionally it may be seen wading 
into the shallow water in pursuit of small fishes. It is conspicuously gregarious in 
habit, and is constantly calling upon others to unite with it, its shrill cry betraying 
its presence to the hunter. It is readily attracted by decoys, answering the fowler’s 
whistle, and, if the sportsman is well concealed, gliding directly up to the decoys, 
gradually lowering its long legs, which, when it flies, project beyond its tail-feathers. 
It is much more timid than the Red-breasted Snipe, yet, like that species, when 
invited by the hunter’s whistle, will not infrequently return and receive his second 
fire. The cry of this species is very shrill, consisting of three or more notes. WTien 
wounded in the wing it will run very fast, and will often conceal itself so successfully 
in the long grass as to escape detection. It is often seen on streams in the interior. 
Its flesh is not particularly good, yet it meets with a ready sale in the New York 
market, and large numbers are shot to supply the demand. Giraud mentions one 
instance in which one hundred and six were killed by the single discharge of a 
double-barrelled gun into a flock that was sitting along the beach. In the latter part 
of August the Yellowshank begins to move southward, and in September all have 
usually retired from the shores of Long Island. 
