SANDPIPERS 
199 
235b, Western Purple Sandpiper. la maubeche des roches de l’ouest. 
ArquateUa ptilocnemis. L, 9, A rather small sandpiper. Adult in spring: above, dark 
brown, variegated on edges and tips of 
feathers with a little whitish or greyish 
and much deep rusty; below, white, blotch- 
ed or spotted with grey, rusty and black 
in variable proportions without much 
pattern across breast and along flanks, 
throat paler. Legs dull yellowish or 
yellowish green. In autumn and winter 
almost identical with Atlantic Purple Sand- 
piper, which see. 
Distinctions. A strictly maritime west 
coast species. In spring strongly reddish 
above, variously blotched on breast and 
with a more or less black abdominal patch. 
Much like the Red- backed Sandpiper, but 
a little larger and with a shorter bill. The 
red on the back is not so extensive and is 
confined to the feather borders, never Figure 285 
barred across them, and the breast usually Aleutian Purple Sandpiper; 
contains from traces of, to considerable, red- scale, $. 
dish. 
In autumn or winter it may be distinguished from other similarly coloured grey and 
white waders, such as the Knot, Red-backed Sandpiper, Wandering Tattler, and Surf- 
bird by size — larger than the Red-backed, smaller than any of the others. Prom all 
except the Surf-bird it may be distinguished by its darker coloration, sharp, coarse spot- 
ting on lower breast and flanks, and the dark, almost black, centre to the feathers of the 
back. Besides having a darker back and being smaller, it is infallibly separated from the 
Surf-bird by having a dark instead of a white rump. 
Field Marks. In spring, general suffused dark colour and short, yellowish legs. In 
autumn, it comes very late and winters on the rocky coast where it is likely to be con- 
fused only with the Wandering Tattler and the Surf-bird. It is smaller and darker coloured, 
especially across the breast, than the former and, unlike the latter, has a black instead of 
a white rump. 
Nesting. On the ground amongst the rocks. 
Distribution. Pacific regions of northern hemisphere. Breeds in the Aleutian and 
Pribilof Islands and migrates down the coasts. Winters along our coast. 
SUBSPECIES. This species has hitherto been regarded as a western subspecies 
of maritima the Eastern Purple Sandpiper, but in the last edition of the Check-list it 
has been raised to a full species, a proceeding with which the present writer is in full accord. 
Two subspecies of this species are recognized: ArquateUa ptilocnemis couesi, the Aleutian 
Sandpiper (la Maubdche ahkmfienne), wintering on our coast; and ArquateUa ptilocnemis 
ptilocnemis, the Pribilof Sandpiper (la Maubeche des lies Pribylov), a more heavily 
coloured bird that has not been recognized on Canadian shores. 
The Western Purple Sandpiper and its races are birds of the rocky 
islet shores. It is a late autumn arrival and spends the winter on the 
sea-girt rocks of the outer Pacific coast in company with Black Turnstones 
and Surf-birds. 
238. Sharp- tailed Sandpiper, la maubeche a queue fine. Pisobia acuminata. 
L, 8-50. A small sandpiper of same general size and coloration as the Buff-breasted, but 
with the ochres less extensive and solid. Back, dark brow'n with many feather edges of 
ochre and rusty. Below, white tinged with ruddy brown, strongest on breast where it is 
finely and brokenly streaked — not nearly as uniform or complete as in the Pectoral Sand- 
piper but more than in the Buff-breasted. Crown, strongly rufous, bordered by a light 
superciliary line. Tail pointed and composed of pointed feathers. 
Distinctions. Most like the Pectoral or Buff-breasted Sandpipers, but with red crown 
and pointed tail. The breast is far more sparsely spotted and the breast-band more diffuse 
and inconspicuous than that of the Pectoral. Separated from the Buff-breasted by light 
superciliary line, red cap, more specklings on throat, and without the beautiful under-w r ing 
pattern of that species, back striped rather than with scale-like rings. 
