EASTERN COMMON SANDPIPER. 
Adult male, in summer-plumage. Greneral colour above olive-brown, including the bead, 
back, wings, and tail ; the feathers of the head, hind-neck, and mantle having 
narrow dark shaft-lines, while those of the back and wings have dark cross-bars, 
some of the lateral upper tail-coverts are edged with white ; the small marginal 
coverts round the bend of the wing as also the outer edge of the bastard-wing and 
outer primary-coverts white ; bastard-wing, primary-coverts, and primary- quills pale 
brown, the latter white on the middle inner-webs, except the outer one, the inner 
ones edged with white at the tips ; secondaries white at the base and brown at 
the tips, the middle ones edged with white at the tips, some of the inner quills 
almost entirely white, the innermost olive-brown barred with darker brown ; middle 
tail-feathers like the back, the outer feathers paler, notched and tipped with white 
also mottled with buffy-white ; a white spot in front of the eye and a dark hne 
through the latter ; sides of face and ear-coverts pale brown, intermixed with white, 
giving a streaked appearance ; throat, abdomen, under tad-coverts white, like 
the axdlaries and under wing-coverts ; fore-neck and breast white with narrow 
brown shaft-lines becoming brown on the sides of the breast where it forms a 
patch. Total length 215 mm. ; cuhnen 26, wing 112, tail 58, tarsus 24. 
Adult female, in summer-plumage. Similar to the male but larger, and the streaks on the 
middle of and the patch on the sides of breast not so strongly pronounced. 
Adult male, in winter-plumage. Differs from the summer-plumage in being more bronzy- 
oHve on the back and scapulars, the crossing and shaft-hnes not so strongly 
pronounced, the bars on the wings minute and composed of black and buff ; bill 
brown, base of lower mandible grey ; iris brown ; feet leaden-grey tinged 
with brown. 
Adult female, in winter-plumage. Similar to the male. 
Nest. A depression in the grass. 
Eggs. “ Clutch four. Ground colour either greyish or yellowish white, covered all over 
with underlying spots of grey, and others, few and irregular, of deep or coffee-brown. 
On some there are a few lines and zig-zags ; generally the markings are thicker on 
the large end, which is sometimes even smudged with brown. Axis 33 to 37.2 mm. ; 
diameter 24-8 to 26.2.” (Taczanowski.) 
Breeding-season. June and July (Sakhaline Island, Nikolski). 
Mr. J. P. Rogers collected these birds at Derby, North-west Austrahar 
“ They are not numerous during March and April, and do not go in flocks ; 
they are usually found along the muddy banks of tidal creeks and often in the 
small gutters through the mangroves, also in the reefs at low tide and some- 
times on the sandy beaches. When disturbed they perch on the scattered 
mangroves which in places are perhaps one hundred yards or more off the 
water’s edge at high tide.” 
On Melville Island the same man found them fairly plentiful in November, 
and tame for a Wader. At Spring tides when the beaches were covered, they 
were seen feeding in the forest country, which came right down to the beach. 
It was found usually soHtary, but sometimes small parties of three and four 
were observed, and at times it mixed with other species of Waders. 
Captain S. A. White says that he has seen this species at the mouth of 
the Adelaide River in South Australia. 
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