89 
SNIPES, SANDPIPEKS, ETC. 
in the muddy bottoms, under grass, flags, and tules, fishing up his 
food from the soft mud, the sensitive tip of his long bill enabling 
him to select the choicest worms and other dainty morsels. 
He is a common bird wherever there are marshes to his taste, and 
most country folk are familiar with his song. On warm summer 
evenings or cloudy days before a storm he mounts high in air and 
with rapidly vibrating wings produces a prolonged whirr that in¬ 
creases to a diminutive roar, and repeats it every minute or two for 
sometimes half an hour. At other times he flies low over the grass, 
uttering a guttural chuck-chuck-chuck-chuck-chuck, and then drops 
out of sight. His common, all-the-year-round note is a nasal squank, 
uttered as he springs from the ground at your feet and makes off in 
quick zigzags. 
The only excuse for considering so small a bird game is his swift 
irregular flight, which saves him from all but the expert wing shot. 
Vernon Bailey. 
GENUS MACEORHAMPHUS. 
General Characters. — Bill similar to that of Gallinago; lower part of 
back white, rump spotted black and white ; tail finely cross-barred with 
black, buff, and white. 
KEY TO SUMMER ADULTS. 
1. Belly rich cinnamon brown. scolopaceus, p. 89. 
1'. Belly white or huffy. griseus, p. 89. 
231. Macrorhamphus griseus ( Gmel.) Dowitcher. 
Similar to scolopaceus but smaller and adults in summer distinguished 
by whitish belly and dusky specking of sides and breast. Length: 10-11, 
wing 5.25-5.90, bill 2.00-2.55, tarsus 1.20-1.50. Female decidedly larger 
than male. 
Distribution. — Eastern North America, breeding far north; south in 
winter to Brazil; west as stragglers (?) to Idaho and Oregon. 
232. Macrorhamphus scolopaceus (Say). Long-billed Dow¬ 
itcher. 
Adults in summer. — A light stripe over eye and dusky stripe from eye 
to bill; upper parts, except rump and 
lower back, specked and mottled with 
black, brown, and buff; rump white, 
spotted with black, tail feathers barred 
black and white ; entire under parts 
bright cinnamon specked on throat and barred on sides and lower tail cov¬ 
erts with dusky. Adults in winter: belly and line over eye white ; rest 
of plumage gray. Young : similar to adults but back and crown mottled 
with black and ochraceous ; belly and chest suffused with light cinnamon. 
Length: 11.00-12.50, wing 5.40-6.00, bill 2.10-3.00, tarsus 1.35-1.75. 
Distribution. —Western North America, breeding in British Columbia 
and Alaska; migrating south through western United States and Missis¬ 
sippi valley to northern South America; less common in eastern United 
States. 
Fig. 103. 
