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Birds of Bristol County, Mess. 
F. W. Andros. 
Are»aria interpres (Linn.), Turnstone. Mi- 
grant, tolerably common iu spring and fall 
along the coast. 
O.&O. XII. Sept. 1887 P -^9 
Limicolae in Bristol County. 
H. F. Dexter, Dartmouth, Mass. 
Turnstone, Strepsilas interpres. Frequently 
seen along the coast in August and September. 
One or two specimens have been reported as 
| taken on one of our large inland ponds. 
O.&o. XII. Sept. 1887 p.147 
Shore Birds of Cape Cod. 
JohnO.Cahoon. . 
Turnstone, Arenaria interpres (Linn.) “Chick- 
en” Plover” on Cape Cod. A common spring, 
summer and autumn migrant. The first ones 
arrive at the Cape in the spring about the first 
of May, increasing until the 24th and a few re- 
main until June loth. I have seen individuals 
as late as June 24th. The first comers on their 
return from the north reach the Cape about 
the last of July, increasing about the middle of 
August by the arrival of the young birds. 
They are the most common about the last of 
August and remain tolerably common until late, 
in September. It was, some twenty or thirty 
years ago, abundant on the water side of the 
Cape. In its handsome adult dress it is the 1 
most conspicuous of any of the Limicolae that 
visit our Cape shores. Although it is often 
seen on the sandy beaches, bars and flats, its 
favorite haunts are low pebbly or rocky beaches, 
mud flats, and the shores of salt creeks. In the 
summer and autumn it retires to the high 
beaches to rest during high tide, but in the; 
spring it goes on to the salt marshes like many 
of our other birds. In the spring of ISbS laige 
flocks came on to the Quinset marshes at Brews- 
ter in company with Black-bellied Plover. 
Their food consists of small crustaceans, horse- 
foot eggs and soft marine animals, many of 
1 w hich it finds by turning over small stones and 
I from this habit it derives its name of Turnstone. 
This is one of the several shore birds that I 
| have found feeding about heaps of guano on 
Monomoy Island. This species is not usually 
! S hy and will alight to any of the shore bird de- 
| coys. Their note, a short, sharp whistle, re- 
peated with great rapidity, is very hard to 
imitate. They are generally seen in parties of 
| from two to six, but in the spring when flying 
to the marshes, they congregate in flocks of 
: twelve or more individuals and fly very swiftly, 
calling incessantly to each other. 
O.&o. XIII. Oot. 1888 P.I 5 Q 
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